


Senior Year

by Flufferdoodle



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Awkward Flirting, Fast Food, Fluff, I like keep looking back at this confused, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Slow Burn, enjoy, i guess, idek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:47:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 23,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25604566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flufferdoodle/pseuds/Flufferdoodle
Summary: It's senior year of high school, and Red meets Blue at his part-time job. They're trying to figure out everything from college to exams to prom, but at least they can do it together.
Relationships: Ookido Green | Blue Oak/Red
Comments: 8
Kudos: 63





	Senior Year

**Author's Note:**

> this is based off the US education system. Students attend public school usually from ages 5-18, starting with kindergarten, followed by first grade, second grade, etc. Ninth grade is the start of high school (freshman), tenth is sophomore, eleventh is junior, twelfth is senior. A lot of schools offer Advanced Placement (AP) courses, which are basically challenging courses that you can receive college credit for if you do well on the test at the end of the year. (5 is best score, 1 is worst.) Other standardized tests, namely ACT and SAT, are also usually needed to apply for college.

Red looked down at Charmeleon, peacefully sprawled across the foot of his bed. Light snores drifted through the air as Red carefully slipped out of bed. He’d gone straight to bed after school so he could get a few hours of rest in before his first night shift. Charmeleon had been confused and puttered around, spouting smoke while Red willed himself to sleep in the mid-afternoon. The curtains were pulled shut, the lights turned off, and Red felt anything but well-rested.

Night shift paid double, though, and he’d be leaving for college in less than a year. Applications were due in a week and federal financial aid had been submitted just a week before. Third-party scholarship applications loomed in the months following the last of the Early Action deadlines, and piles of AP exams and test prep were soon to follow.

His high school’s grant to cover AP exams was running out this year, so two of the tests he’d have to pay for himself. Only about a third of the colleges he was applying to waived application fees, and those numbers were beginning to stack up. He’d told his mom it was fine – he’d cut down on the list, lower his sights a little: a degree was a degree regardless of where it came from.

She’d shook her head sternly and insisted they could afford it. Red deserved more, she constantly said. He deserved the best the region had to offer.

Red wasn’t sure how true that was. It wasn’t like the competition at the 500-student Pallet Town public high school was exactly _steep_.

He bumped his hours at the local McBurger’s, much to his mother’s protest, and figured he’d just wait and see how the year played out.

Pulling on his uniform, Red crinkled his nose at the scent of fryers and polyester, amplified in the emptiness of the night. He grabbed a comb, yanking it through his hair without checking in the mirror, and yanked his work visor over his head. The door creaked as Red pushed it open, and he glanced back at Charmeleon, who sleepily lifted his head to watch him.

He wished he could bring his Pokémon with him to work.

When he was ten, the pair managed to take down Brock in Pewter City despite the type disadvantage. He’d made the national news in a short, feel-good blurb that week, an exciting moment he still held close to his heart.

Red still dreamed of being a trainer, sometimes, but equipment and time were things he couldn’t afford. Team Rocket made travelling dangerous these days, too. Stories of missing teenagers and dead Pokémon decorated the evening news every night. He couldn’t put that constant fear on his mom.

His single Boulder Badge sat in a little quartz box, Red’s most prized birthday gift that year, with his name etched into the side. He looked at it more often as graduation grew near. Would he have a chance to travel, afterwards? To give Charmeleon the life he deserved as a fully trained Pokémon?

He waved good-bye to his mother, though she didn’t notice. She was asleep on the couch again, the nightly news glowing on the screen in front of her. Red sighed and grabbed the keys off the table and walked out to his car.

Old, battered, and functional, it lazily came to life in the cold evening air. One of the headlights was out. Of course.

Leaf had left one of her jackets in the backseat, and Red made a mental note to return it to her on Monday. She’d never been good at tracking all of her belongings, always leaving something somewhere. Not that Red was much better, he supposed.

The drive to McBurger’s was quiet and lonely, and Red wondered what he could expect on his first real night shift.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled into the employee parking lot, his clock glowing 9:28pm. Just the right amount of time to walk in and clock in.

The restaurant was busier than he expected at this time, with small clusters of high school and college students laughing in bright, red booths that squeaked with every movement. A “Caution: Wet-Floor” sign was set up in front of the drink station, its near-permanent home.

Red walked to the kitchen and grabbed an apron before clocking in on the computer. The plastic cover on the keyboard was orange and barely transparent after months of abuse. He remembered the faint relief when they replaced it, but this one hadn’t lasted as long as the last one. He doubted the store would care enough to replace it again, even if just touching it made one feel gross and unclean.

He waved at Joey. Joey wiped the sweat off his brow as he stepped away from the fryers.

“Yo, Red. You got the night shift this weekend?”

Red nodded.

“Good luck. It’s not too bad, but they may stick you on the drive-thru for a while if things slow down too much. But, well, it’s Friday. You should be good, man.” He clapped Red on the back before clocking out. “I’ll be on the register tomorrow night. See you then?”

Red nodded again, and Joey waved again as he walked out, flinging his rumpled apron into the bin by the door.

No pending orders waiting, Red took time to scrub down the center counter thoroughly and restock the stacks of papers and bags near the front. Another employee walked in as he did so.

Red frowned. He didn’t recognize him; spiky brown hair adorned a lightly tanned face with sharp blue eyes, about an inch taller than Red. He carried an air of confidence about him, his facial expression declaring he was bored with the world.

“What’s up?” he asked tiredly as he grabbed a headset and coffee and walked over to the drive-thru window. “You new here?”

Red shook his head.

“New to night shift?”

Red nodded.

“Great. It’ll be the time of your life, I promise.”

Red looked down and worked on scraping a week-old mustard stain on the side of the table. It’d been bothering him ever since he first noticed it, but it never seemed to come off.

“You got a name?” the drive-thru boy asked.

“Red.”

He smirked. Red frowned.

“I’m Blue.”

He looked like he expected Red to say something, but Red wasn’t entirely sure what that something was.

“Okay,” Red said at last.

“Color names,” Blue said.

Red nodded.

“Matching set.”

“…Purple,” Red agreed, and Blue laughed. It was a pleasant sound, if haughty and knowing. Red liked it.

The buzzer by the window beeped, and Blue turned to the drive-thru window.

“Hello, welcome to McBurger’s. What can I get for you today?” he said. Red smirked at his customer service voice, about a fifth higher than what Blue’s voice was moments before. Five bucks said Blue hated it. All of them did. Melodic, passive, and, at least in Red’s case, completely unintentional, it was near impossible to turn them off once a customer came into view.

Blue punched the order into the terminal, and Red watched it show up on his screen by the fryers.

“Okay, that’ll be five large fries, two medium chocolate milkshakes, one with whipped cream, and a Cheerful Meal toy?” he confirmed. Red blinked. “What was that? A quarter-pounder, nothing but pickles? No bun? Alright, that’ll be $17.42. We’ll have it out in a moment.”

Red prepared the fries and pickle burger while Blue filled up the milkshakes. He grabbed a paper bag and carefully stacked everything in before passing it across the table to Blue, who handed it out to the car with a smile. He punched the meal as completed and turned to Red.

“Meat and pickles?” Blue said. “You’d think it’d be a bit early for the drunks to be out.”

Red nodded.

“Don’t talk much, do you?”

Red shrugged. Blue smirked.

“How old’re you, anyways?”

“Seventeen,” Red said, dumping more frozen fries into the fryer.

“Hey, same. You’re not at Charter One, are you?”

“No. Pallet High.”

“Ah.”

Red nodded.

“Heard that place is a dump.”

Red bristled slightly as he re-rolled the fry bag and yanked the freezer door open.

“It’s fine.”

“You a senior?”

“Yeah.”

“Same.”

“Well, we’re the same age,” Red said.

Blue smirked harder.

“Figured you’d learn how that worked at a charter school,” Red added. He grabbed the tongs and stirred the fries some.

“You going to college?”

Red blinked. That was blunt. “Trying to. You?”

“Yep. What do you want to study?”

Red shrugged.

“The infamous undecided,” Blue said knowingly.

Red debated flipping him off, but thankfully another customer pulled up at the window and rescued him from the conversation. Red yawned and fought the urge to rub his eyes as Blue took the order, voice sickly sweet.

Red wordlessly prepared it while Blue grabbed drinks. The customer drove off.

Blue turned back to Red.

Red looked at the clock. Six more hours. Somehow.

“Where do you want to go?”

Red shrugged, eyes dropping back down to Blue’s.

“Helluva plan you’ve got there,” Blue noted.

“Thanks,” Red said deadly.

Blue seemed to be getting a pretty big kick out of all this, and Red started to understand why this man only ever was given the night shift.

“I’m going to Saffron Tech,” Blue stated.

“Their EA applications haven’t even closed yet,” Red said.

“Ah. You know of it?”

Red rolled his eyes.

“Well, I figure if anyone I know could get in, it’s me, is all,” Blue said with false nonchalance. “Top of my class, graduating with 10 APs, buckets of extracurriculars…”

“I’m graduating with 12 APs,” Red stated.

Blue blinked. “Oh really? Average score?”

“4.6 so far. Taking five this year.”

“Ah. I’ve taken six so far, only got one 4.”

“Good for you.”

Blue’s smirk returned, and Red considered punching it.

“Thanks. Seems like you’re doing pretty okay, yourself. You could make it into some pretty decent schools if your grades match.”

Red scowled.

“Do they not?” Blue ventured.

“Valedictorian.”

“Same.” Blue’s smirk grew into a slightly menacing grin, as if Red was turning into some interesting puzzle. Red glared back, expression dead. “Three hundred people in my class, though, so I suppose the competition is a bit steeper.”

Red turned around and went back to the fryer, ignoring Blue’s chuckle as Red lifted one of the fry baskets to cool. Another customer drove up, and Red smiled to himself as he heard them yell at Blue.

Blue’s voice, maddeningly calm and passive, handled the situation fine, however, and Red took extra care to ensure their order was correct before passing it over. The customer drove off, and the distant sound of a car horn drifted through the window screen moments later.

“They’re drunk off their asses,” Blue stated.

“Call the cops?”

Blue shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

“Car description?”

“Dark blue SUV, slightly dented. Driver is mid-twenties white male with purple hair.”

Red grabbed the phone on the wall, glaring at Blue all the while. The police picked up, and Red curtly provided the description while the cop took notes before hanging up.

They stayed like that for a while, staring at each other, Blue smirking, Red tired and annoyed.

Bridget interrupted them moments later, walking up from the front desk. “Main area’s closed,” she stated. “I cleaned up most of it. You guys can take care of the bathroom. Have fun.” Either oblivious or apathetic to the tension, she walked up to the computer, clocked out, and left.

“Have fun with the bathrooms, Red,” Blue said as the door swung shut behind her.

“I’d do it if I thought you could use a fryer,” Red said levelly, “but I’m pretty sure you’d burn yourself, so I think it’s safer for you to take care of it.”

Blue snorted. “Wow, that’s more words than you’ve said all night. I dunno, I feel like you’d drive any customers away from the window with that shit attitude of yours.”

“Look who’s talking,” Red said. He forced his face to stay relaxed and even, refusing to let Blue get the better of him. Leaf told him it was pretty hard to tell what he was feeling most of the time anyways, so he assumed his face would be blank as normal.

“I’ve worked the night shift for months, asshole,” Blue said, “no problems yet. You’re the newbie, go clean the bathroom.”

“I’ve worked here two years.”

“But never the night shift.”

“Possibly because Tamia likes me.”

“Oh please, I’m her favorite.”

“So she puts you on night shift when she doesn’t have to see you.”

Blue smirked.

Red’s face stayed empty.

“I like you, Red. You’ve got some fire.”

Red threw off his apron and went to clean the bathrooms.

**-line break-**

Charmeleon snorted happily as Red opened the door, stinking of fried food and exhausted to the core. Outside, the sun peaked over the horizon, spilling light onto their small town.

Red knew he had homework to do, and needed to get some rest before the night shift tonight. But with Charmeleon looking at him with his clear coal eyes, dulled down claws hopefully tapping against the floor, Red couldn’t find it in him to care.

“Let me get changed,” he told his companion, nodding to his mom in the kitchen as he ran up to his room and stripping off his work uniform. He threw on a t-shirt and gym shorts, as always, ignoring the allure of his unmade bed, before returning to the front door.

He and Charmeleon took a moment on the porch to stretch, Charmeleon obediently copying each of Red’s movements. Red waved to Susan as she walked by, a cheerful Growlithe at her heels.

“You look tired, Red!” she called. “School wearing you down?”

Red shook his head as she gave a knowing smile.

“You keep making your mom proud!”

Once done stretching, Red and Charmeleon took off towards the park at an easy jog. Charmeleon dropped to all fours, tail swishing behind him. Red always appreciated Charmeleon’s sleek, precise movements. He shifted so seamlessly between all he did now. As a Charmander, he’d easily topple and fall over during these jogs, never able to balance well on his two legs or move quickly on all four.

Red had worried once he’d evolved. Charmeleons ate twice as much as Charmanders, and were known for being aggressive and territorial. However, other than terrorizing the occasional Rattata that found its way into Red’s backyard, Charmeleon didn’t show much change in personality. He stayed close and loyal to Red as ever.

Red wondered if he’d ever become a Charizard.

Training like this kept Charmeleon strong and healthy, but it wasn’t enough to push him to the next level. That would take far more time and dedication than Red could commit, and battles with trainers stronger than those in Pallet Town. Most people here Red’s age didn’t train, anyways. A handful of ten through twelve-year-olds would, giving up after a year or so of getting a Pokémon.

Once they reached the park, they started doing sprints along the empty basketball court. Breathing hard, Red ignored the dizzying feeling shouting at him to get some sleep. He ignored the feeling. They didn’t need a long session today, anyways. Just enough to keep Charmeleon content for the day. They could go again tomorrow night for longer.

They moved on to breathing exercises before long, Red admiring the sparkles in Charmeleon’s breath. The cracked concrete surface of the basketball court had amassed countless scorch marks and strange stains from years of training, most of them from Charmeleon. Purple smoke and glitter poured from Charmeleon’s throat, adding another.

“Push harder,” Red ordered, demonstrating himself with a sharp, forceful exhale.

Charmeleon copied him, and the smoke reached the grass, starting a small fire. Red hurried over to stomp it out, giving his Pokémon a thumbs up.

They continued their paces with Fire Fang, Slash, and Smokescreen before Red finally felt too exhausted to continue. He laid down in the grass, Charmeleon standing expectantly at his side.

Red reached up to pet his snout, fighting to stay awake in the soft grass and warm sun.

“Five minutes,” he told his Pokémon, eyes drifting shut.

**-line break-**

“Well, look who’s here,” a voice mocked above him.

Red groaned, slowly lifting his head. Smoke poured out of Charmeleon’s nostrils as he growled at the newcomer. He laid his head protectively against Red’s chest, eyes narrowed to slits in warning.

Red looked up at Blue, who was smirking down at him. Of course. Of fucking course.

“I see the night shift’s taken its toll on you,” Blue commented as he crouched down next to him. “But napping in a park? Really?”

Charmeleon growled louder. Blue tsked.

“This yours?” he asked, jabbing a finger towards Charmeleon, who bared his teeth.

“Can I help you?” Red muttered, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

“No, but you can battle me.”

Red looked over, noticing the Wartortle at Blue’s side for the first time.

Huh.

“Later,” Red said and rose to his feet. “I have shit to do.”

“Didn’t seem like that a moment ago,” Blue baited. “Napping in the grass like that. What, you scared?”

“Just tired,” Red said. “Later.”

“Now.”

Charmeleon snapped, and Red sighed, studying the Wartortle before him.

“Fine.”

The type disadvantage would suck, but Charmeleon was fast enough that they could outdo it. Besides, Wartortle wouldn’t be able to do much with a Smokescreen up. Neither would Blue, if he did it well enough. He didn’t have the benefit of a trainer box here in the park. Limited to close quarters on the basketball court, Charmeleon would have an advantage.

“One on one,” Blue stated. Red rolled his eyes. He only had the one Pokémon, anyways. “No swapping, no items. I’ll set the timer to five minutes.”

Red shrugged as he took his place next to a hoop, Charmeleon walking to the middle of the court. He shook with anticipation, and Red took a deep breath. Charmeleon copied seconds later.

The Wartortle, smug and full of swagger, just like his trainer, and took his place in front of his trainer. He’d want distance.

“Three,” Blue started, “Two…. _One._ ”

Red clapped his hands and Charmeleon puffed out as much smoke as he could produce. A gentle breeze shoved it directly into Blue and Wartortle’s face, and Red sucked in a sharp breath. Charmeleon responded in turn by swapping out to a Dragon Breath, smoke still pouring out of his nostrils as he slowly circled.

“ _Bubblebeam!”_

Red would have shouted out a warning to Charmeleon, but he didn’t need to. He heard Blue’s command just as clearly, and immediately jumped to the fray, claws bared, fangs alight.

Red watched his silhouette intently, letting out a shout once he saw Wartortle’s tail emerge from the smoke. Charmeleon immediately dove to the right, dodging another Bubblebeam before slashing hard at Wartortle’s side.

“Protect!” Blue ordered, and the turtle pulled himself into his shell. Charmeleon kicked it towards Red.

“Smoke into the shell,” Red stated quietly. Charmeleon gave a small nod before shoving his snout into the shell head and roaring, gray smoke thickening.

“Bite!”

Charmeleon shrieked as Wartortle chomped onto his upper jaw, nostrils encompassed in Wartortle’s mouth.

Red clapped.

Wartortle suddenly flew off, coughing. Red could barely see either of them in the thick cover, but he could feel Charmeleon’s tension as he rubbed at his snout.

Red snapped and Charmeleon slashed right at Wartortle’s face. Blue panickedly shouted from the other side, occasionally coughing, unable to see what was going on. Wartortle lunged at Charmeleon to bite again, but this time he latched onto Charmeleon’s arm and got a face full of Dragon Breath before Charmeleon bit down with a Fire fang.

Wartortle let go and retreated back towards Blue.

“Surf,” Blue ordered.

Red’s stomach dropped.

“Steam it,” he snapped at Charmeleon, and his loyal companion wasted no time in spewing out a fiery Dragon Breath, filling up the entire field. Sludgy, smoky water progressed towards him, steam rising off the top of it. Charmeleon held his tail high, swishing it angrily as he waded through the ankle deep water towards Wartortle. Red felt sweat roll down the side of his face as the area heated to a nearly unbearable temperature.

Blue’s phone started dinging.

Red groaned. Wartortle jumped off the battlefield, and Charmeleon turned to Red questioningly.

“Battle’s over,” he stated, darting out to meet his Pokémon in the middle of the mess. Smoke stung at his lungs and he knew he’s have to wash his shoes of all the sooty water, but he didn’t care. That was the fiercest battle he’d had in years. Not that that was saying much, but still. He was proud.

Charmeleon paused, disappointment evident, before nudging his head into Red’s hand. Red wrapped his arms around him, lifting him gleefully into the air. Charmeleon affectionately nuzzled into Red’s neck as he carried him off the field to a waiting Blue.

“That was a dirty trick,” Blue deadpanned.

“Hm?” Red asked, unable to stop himself from grinning.

“Smoke? Really?”

Red shrugged, lowering Charmeleon to the ground. He’d have to stop by the store later and get some jerky strips for him later.

“Doesn’t seem fair.”

“Legal move,” Red pointed out.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. That’s for in a stadium when I’m safely tucked away in a trainer box,” Blue stated, arms crossed. Wartortle sulked at his side.

“Whatever you say,” Red said.

“What other Pokémon do you have?” Blue asked. “You didn’t strike me as a trainer type.”

“None.”

Blue blinked. “Ah. So not really a trainer, then.”

Red shrugged.

“I mean, are you going to study a Pokémon related field in college, at least?”

Red shrugged again. Blue opened his mouth, brow furrowed, when Red cut him off.

“I need to get going,” Red stated. “See you whenever.”

He walked off, feeling the adrenaline crash and exhaustion double up as he made his way home. His mom looked at him worriedly as he trudged up the stairs.

“Charmeleon won a battle,” he offered. He knew it to be true, even if it hadn’t been directly stated.

“Ah,” his mom said, surprise evident.

He didn’t give her a chance to ask more before he passed out on his bed.

**-line break-**

Leaf sat next to him in the library, frowning at the Calc BC homework.

“I don’t get it,” she stated.

Red nodded.

“Do you?”

He shook his head.

Leaf groaned, dropping her head to the table. “I hate this.”

Red nodded again, questioningly punching something into his calculator and frowning at the result.

“I miss when you knew if an answer was correct by seeing if it was a whole number,” Leaf continued. “Now it’s just. Everything’s an ugly answer! Nothing looks ‘correct!’”

“We know it can’t be negative,” Red offered.

Leaf glowered.

The school library was always empty after school save for them and a couple freshmen Red didn’t recognize. He and Leaf often met to study, compare application essays, or just do anything that didn’t involve going home.

“How was the night shift, by the way?” she asked, changing the subject. “You mentioned you took that this weekend.”

Red shrugged. The second night had been fine, just him and Joey. Joey was a good person, even if they weren’t exactly close. Joey didn’t try to force small talk, though, which he appreciated greatly. They just turned on music and made small games of catch and soccer out of the broken kids’ meal toys. The first night…. Well, he met Blue. Not much more to say than that.

“Tiring,” Red said at last.

Leaf snorted. “No kidding. Have any interesting customers?”

“I worked the fryer.”

“Ah. So you didn’t have to deal with the 2am drunks demanding waffles with a discontinued sauce.”

Red shrugged.

“You gonna do it again?”

“Scheduled for it this weekend.”

“My sister and I took NightQuall to sleep in the afternoons when we worked the Waffle Castle night shifts,” Leaf offered. “I wouldn’t recommend it long term, but it helped. Also, caffeine. Lots and lots of caffeine.”

Red nodded. They continued studying for a while before packing their things up to head home.

“By the way,” Leaf added as they reached her house, “Ivy’s been itching to train more for a while. I don’t want to battle you – I know you’ll cream us both with Charmeleon – but I was wondering if we could join you sometime this week. I think it’d be refreshing for her to train with a partner again.”

Red nodded. “We’re at the park, 8 o’clock every night I’m not working.”

“I’ve got a lot to do with applications this week, so we’ll probably join you starting next Monday, then,” Leaf said gratefully. “Also, my mom said to invite you over for dinner sometime.”

Red smiled a bit as she walked inside. He then headed home and opened up his laptop, bringing up his Saffron Tech application with a sigh. He hated the “why” essays with a burning passion.

Why did he want to go there? The same reasons everyone else did. It was famous. Prestigious. Challenging. The best of the best. He wanted to be challenged. He wanted to prove he was smart, that his success in high school wasn’t just a fluke but the result of his own hard work and talent. He wanted to carry that success with him forever.

The same. Goddamn. Reasons. Everybody. Else. Had.

He groaned at the few sentences he had written. The due date was Sunday, and he wasn’t ready in the slightest. But if he didn’t make it in time for Early Action, there was no way he’d get in on Regular Decision.

Red switched tabs back to the Viridian State and Pewter School of Science with a sigh. Mr. Oak said he’d have his letter of rec done by tomorrow, but he probably needed a reminder.

Mr. Oak was an odd teacher, doubling as a renowned Pokémon professor who gave guest lectures all over the world. Red and Leaf had dedicated many hours to speculating why he bothered to come back and teach at their little high school, unable to every reach a conclusion. They were both grateful for his presence, though. He was kind, welcoming, and constantly encouraging. It was hard not to like him.

Red hummed as he switched back to his Saffron Tech essay and listened as Charmeleon’s feet clacked against the floor. Mr. Oak had been the one to insist he apply, and had directed him to a handful of scholarship foundations that could help him should he get in.

But first, Red needed to write this godforsaken essay.

**-line break-**

Red chugged his Beast energy drink, grimacing at the taste as he walked into McBurger’s.

“Get the Black Raspberry Twist next time,” Joey advised as he clocked out. “Cherry Screaming tastes like shit.”

Red nodded. The smell of fryer grease mingling with the aftertaste of the drink made him slightly nauseas as he took his place. He threw some burgers on the grill as orders appeared on the screen, feeling his body start to tremble with the caffeine.

Blue showed up twenty minutes later, coffee in hand as he walked over to the drive-thru window.

“That yours?” he asked, nodding towards the empty Beast can. Red nodded. “Gross.”

They worked wordlessly for the first hour until Bridget clocked out, leaving just the drive-thru open, and Red went to clean the bathrooms without comment.

When he came back, Blue was scowling over the grill.

“Get some onion rings going,” he snapped. Red rolled his eyes before grabbing the bag out of the freezer and dumping them into the fryers. He glanced up at the order screen and grimaced. “I told them to pull over since it’ll be a while,” Blue stated.

Red shrugged, poking at the onion rings with a pair of tongs. He wondered who would eat this much so late at night. His hands shook slightly from the caffeine.

Another car pulled up, and Blue abandoned the grill to take the next order. Red took over and quickly assembled each sandwich, dumping sauce packets and the cup of onion rings into a large bag once done. Blue started filling cups with sodas as he talked to the current customer, distracting them with small talk before sending Red on his way.

“They’re in a green minivan, already paid,” he whispered, making a shooing gesture. Red grabbed the drink holder and bag and walked out the door.

The night was pleasantly cool, stars hidden behind thick clouds. A pool of oil shone in rainbow colors underneath the parking lot streetlight, and the LED signs on the restaurant spotted Red’s eyes as he walked over to the minivan. He stood outside the driver window and gestured.

Inside sat a large man, neck beard merging into scruffy sideburns. Thick, muscled arms stuck out of a neon green tank top, visible even in the poor lighting. He did not notice Red.

Red tapped on the window.

The man shouted, startled, and Red flinched, the drink container falling out of his hand. He quickly stepped back as the man flung the door open.

“Took you long enough,” he muttered, not acknowledging his moment of panic. “Did you drop my fucking drinks?”

Oh no.

“I’ll go get new ones,” Red said, handing him the bag. “It’ll just be a moment.” God, he hated his customer service voice. Hated it.

“Just a _moment?_ ” the man demanded. “I’ve already been waiting twenty minutes.”

“I am sorry, sir, I’ll be back in a second if you can just wait.”

“I’ve _already been waiting._ I come here all the time, and this is the slowest service I’ve had, and the most you can offer is new drinks?”

Red stood his ground, filled with caffeine-induced confidence. “Yes, sir. This is normal service for this time of the night.”

“I’m not even here that late!”

“Sorry, sir.”

“You should be! I want a refund.”

“This is normal service,” Red repeated. “I dropped the drinks because you startled me. I’m going to replace them now. I can’t give you a refund when you received your food within half an hour.”

The man’s scowl deepened, and he stepped closer to Red. He smelled like cigarette smoke and anger.

This is why Red worked the fryer.

“I will be back in a moment,” Red repeated, and he turned on his heel, walking quickly back to the back door.

“You better be back with my money!” the man roared.

Blue gave him a questioning look as Red hurried over to the drink fountain and filled up two new cups. Red didn’t answer as he ran back outside.

The man crossed his arms as Red offered him the drinks.

“My money?” he asked gruffly.

“Your drinks,” Red stated.

“I want to speak to your manager.”

“I am the manager.” _There was no manager on duty at 12am._

“I’m calling corporate.”

“First, your drinks,” Red said, holding them out.

The man knocked them out of his hands. Red took a deep breath and wordlessly walked inside.

Blue waited by the window, fidgeting with a broken toy Joey and Red had kicked around last week. It was a little figure in a green tunic and funny hat holding a sword from a game Red had played as a child. He wasn’t sure how it had stayed popular for so long, but he had noted its most recent game release with interest. Once he had time and money, he’d give it another shot.

“What happened there? He changed his mind on drinks?” Blue asked.

Red shrugged and walked over to the fryer. Blue heaved a sigh. Red got to work scrubbing off the most recent mustard stain.

“How’d you get your Charmeleon?” Blue asked instead.

Red shrugged.

“Red.”

“Blue.”

“What’re you pissed at me for?”

“I’m not.”

“Then what’s the matter?”

“Nothing?”

“Come on. You were a pretty strong trainer. What’s your story? I wanna know.”

Red shrugged. “I got Charmander as a birthday present when I turned ten. I wanted to be a trainer, but it was never the right time. Got the Boulder Badge, though.”

“…With a Charmeleon?”

“He was still a Charmander.”

Blue blinked. “What?”

Red’s gaze dropped back down to the counter he was cleaning.

“Do you just… look at type disadvantages and say ‘nah’ or what?” Blue asked. “There was no reason you should’ve held up against Wartortle as well as you did.”

“We work hard when we can.”

Blue snorted. “No shit.”

They were interrupted by a customer at the window. Blue turned, eyes widening a bit.

“Welcome back, sir. Was there a problem?”

“I want to speak to a manger.”

Red could hear him all the way in the back. The man from before was back. He hunched his shoulders as Blue shot him a questioning glare.

“That would be me.” _No, it wasn’t. There was no manager on duty._

“Oh, really now? The brat who came out a while ago said it was him.”

Blue glanced at Red again, eyebrows raising. Red shrugged.

“That’s my co-manager. We are both managers,” Blue said.

“Get me the real manager,” the man growled.

“That’d be me.”

“I want a refund.”

“Why?”

“The brat dropped my drinks, twice.”

“Ah.” Blue looked over at Red.

“He suddenly yelled at me the first time and hit the drinks out of my hands the second,” Red explained. Something flashed in Blue’s eyes, and Red feared for a moment that Blue wouldn’t believe him.

“Oh,” Blue said instead, expression hardening.

“In addition to the ridiculous wait-” the man continued.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

“Excuse me? I have been a loyal customer for _years_ , and after this abysmal service, you won’t even consider-”

“If you do not leave now, I will call the cops,” Blue continued.

Red blinked.

The man froze.

“Have a nice night,” Blue said, implying he hoped the man had anything but.

He slammed on his car horn as he drove out, and Blue turned back to Red, mirthlessly grinning.

“I love working here,” he said.

Red looked down to hide the smile on his face, and Blue’s grin turned a bit more genuine.

**-line break-**

The clock held Red’s gaze as Mr. Oak lectured on about Pokémon Individual Values and the genetics controlling them. He knew he’d have to watch a pile of Khan Academy videos later to relearn the content since he processed nothing now, but Red just couldn’t focus. He itched to check his applications again, scroll through his essays and questions one more time, double check that all his identifying information was entered correctly.

Everything was already submitted, all the letters sent in, but Red just felt that he needed to check again. Sure, he checked that morning and the night before and about ten times before submitting, but… he wanted to see again.

Leaf felt the same, he knew. She texted him Sunday night, putting all his anxiety and excitement into words.

Logically, he knew it was fine. And even if he missed anything before, he still had Regular Decision. So did Leaf. They were both okay.

But now it was just… waiting. Scholarships and waiting.

Red hated waiting.

Well, everyone hated waiting, he figured, but he _really_ hated it.

The seconds somehow ticked by slower.

Red clicked his pen against the desk. Leaf kicked the back of his chair, an aggressive request to stop. He did not. She kicked harder. Red clicked louder, smirking. She threw a pencil at the back of his head, and it fell to the floor with a soft clack.

Mr. Oak looked back at them.

Red lowered his eyes from the clock to the whiteboard. He knew that behind him, Leaf was pretending to take notes without a pencil.

Mr. Oak resumed teaching. Red resumed watching the clock. Leaf picked her pencil off the ground.

An eternity later, the bell rang, and Red shot up, pulling his phone out of his pocket to check his applications again. They had lunch next, so there was little rush as he waited for the websites to load on the slow school wi-fi. He unceremoniously shoved his note-less notebook into his backpack as Leaf neatly packed up her own.

“Red,” Mr. Oak called as the pair started to walk towards the door, Red’s eyes still glued to his phone. “If I may talk to you for a moment?”

Leaf looked at him questioningly, and Red offered a shrug before walking over to Oak’s desk. Leaf continued on her own way.

Red stood expectantly at the desk, and Mr. Oak offered a smile.

“Take a seat, Red. It’s nothing bad.”

Red nodded and sat down at the desk closest to Mr. Oak’s.

“I noticed you heeded my advice and applied to Saffron Tech,” Mr. Oak said. “I was delighted to send them your letter of recommendation. I believe you would do great there – that’s where I went, way back in the day. I will be more than happy to recommend you for any scholarships you may need, as well.”

Red nodded, unsure of where this was going. “…Thank you,” he added as an afterthought. Mr. Oak’s smile grew.

“It is nothing, Red. I wanted to offer you something, however. My grandson is also considering the school, and we will be visiting the weekend after next. I have connections that reduce the cost of flying for us, and I wanted to extend the offer for you to join us. We can easily accommodate one more in our hotel room as well, if you’re interested in joining us. Touring colleges can give off a good impression, and you’d have the opportunity to interview as well.”

Red blinked. Mr. Oak had a grandson?

He supposed it made sense. The man was ancient, but Red had never seen any evidence he had kids before. But then again, Mr. Oak never talked much about anything other than Pokémon and his own research.

“Uh,” Red stated after a moment. “That would be great. I’d love to join. Thanks.” He prayed he sounded actually grateful and not robotic as always.

Mr. Oak laughed. “Maybe ask your mother first, Red.”

Red awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as his face flushed. “Right. Thank you, Mr. Oak. I’ll let you know.”

“You do that, Red. You’re a bright individual with a bright future. I’m happy to help you however I can.”

Red nodded as he raised to his feet and shuffled out the door.

**-line break-**

“So what’d your mom say?” Leaf asked as they jogged. Ivysaur, by build a bulkier, slower Pokémon, struggled to keep up. Charmeleon clearly felt annoyed at the reduction in pace, but Red figured they’d make up for it with an extra lap around the park.

“She said yes,” Red said. The sun set in the background, casting the world in pleasant pink and orange hues.

“Of course. How come Oak didn’t offer that to _me?_ ”

Red shrugged.

“I applied there, too!”

“You already toured there,” Red pointed out. “And you said you wanted to go to school in Sinnoh.”

“I don’t know where I want to go! It’s just not fair, though. You’re his favorite.”

Red looked ahead and tried to focus on running.

“I guess you would never go tour it on your own, though,” Leaf pondered. “And he knows that. Red, why do you never do anything?”

“I do plenty.”

“You need to be more aggressive about what you want,” she said.

“I don’t know what I want.”

Leaf huffed as they rounded the first bend of the park, Ivysaur breathing hard beside her.

The pavement felt solid under Red’s feet, even as half-dead dandelions jutted out between the cracks. He knew they’d be gone by the weekend; they sprayed the park weeds every Thursday in September. It wasn’t completely necessary as the park generally started to dry out and hibernate for the winter, but he figured the city felt obligated to do something. He wondered if Ivysaur felt the impact the herbicides after they were sprayed.

She was a healthy beast. Leaf took great care of her, even if she hadn’t been training for battle the past couple years. Red couldn’t blame her. High school had been crazily busy, and between Leaf’s time working at Waffle Castle and her position as the Science Club Captain, she had barely any time for herself. Ivysaur still got out every weekend and could pack a mean Vine Whip, but she wasn’t up to Charmeleon’s level quite yet.

Red wondered if she’d ever evolve into Venusaur, just as he wondered if Charmeleon would ever make it to Charizard.

Probably not. For either of them.

He tried not to let the thought sadden him too much.

“Two more laps,” he said as they neared their starting point again.

Ivysaur groaned.

“Get it together, Ivy,” Leaf said. “We got this.”

Ivysaur made through it fine, just breathing hard once they finally came to a stop and trotted over to the basketball court. It was still covered in black soot from Red and Blue’s battle two weekends before. Leaf made a face at it.

“What happened here?”

Red shrugged. “Battled someone the other week.”

“I didn’t know you were still into battling.”

“He was persistent.”

“Huh. Who was it?”

“Coworker.”

“Name?”

“Blue.”

Leaf snorted. “Red and Blue?”

Red shrugged.

“Let me guess, he had a Wartortle.”

“He did.”

Leaf let out a laugh. “Maybe if Ivy and I get back into the swing of things, we can challenge him. Hell, with the type advantage, I might have a fair chance! How badly did you get clobbered?”

“I think I won.”

“Of fucking course you would. Okay, let’s get to work.”

**-line break-**

The next two weeks passed in a haze. Red felt like he barely had time to think as homework and scholarship applications took over his life. Leaf became busy as the first round of Science Bowl competitions neared, and he found himself in the yearly debate with her of why he wasn’t in Science Bowl the few times he saw her. Work was work; life was life. His motivation for school faded as he daydreamed of the future.

He waited outside school Friday evening, duffel bag in hand. He had debated quite a bit on whether or not he should bring Charmeleon along. He would be allowed on the plane so long as he was in a sealed Pokéball, which he wouldn’t like, but Saffron Tech allowed Pokémon on campus so long as they were Class V or Class IV and well trained.

Charmeleon would have to be getting more used to his Pokéball anyways, regardless of where Red went to school.

In the end he had said to hell with it and recalled his partner for the first time in months. Charmeleon would be better off seeing his potential new home than not, and Red trusted him to behave on campus.

If he evolved, Red realized, he wouldn’t be allowed on most campuses. Charizard was a Class III.

Red sighed as he studied the Pokéball in his hand, wrapped in a clear blue seal for the journey. It wasn’t like Charmeleon would ever evolve, anyways.

Mr. Oak pulled up moments later in a beat-up car that reminded Red faintly of his own. He felt tension release from his shoulders that he didn’t realize he had.

“Red! Hop in! We’ve got no time to waste, I’m sorry we’re already running late,” Mr. Oak called, rolling down the window. “Come on!”

Red rushed over and clambered into the backseat, shoving his duffel bag in beside him. He yanked the door shut and froze.

Blue turned back to look at him from the front seat, hair spiking up in all directions.

What.

“How’ve you been, Red?” Mr. Oak asked, completely unaware of the situation. “School is going well?”

“Yeah,” Red said quietly.

Mr. Oak laughed. “Talkative as ever, I see! Red, this is my grandson with us, Blue. He’s attending Charter One, just north of here. He didn’t want to be seen at the school his grandfather works at, unfortunately.”

“We’ve met,” Blue stated.

“Oh, really? Wonderful. Blue, Red is one of the best students I’ve had. I’m surprised you hadn’t mentioned him before.”

“We battled,” Blue said.

“We work together,” Red said at the same time.

Mr. Oak blinked. “How marvelous! Red, I didn’t realize you were a trainer!”

Red looked back down at the Pokéball in his hand. “I just have a Charmeleon.”

“A strong Charmeleon,” Blue added. “He almost took down Wartortle.”

“Charmeleon won that,” Red said levelly.

“Yeah, yeah. Nobody fainted. It was a draw. We can have a rematch, later. Saffron Tech has a proper stadium.”

“We are _not_ going for you to play around in their stadium, Blue,” Mr. Oak scolded. “You need to give a good impression.”

“Right, Gramps,” Blue muttered, turning back to face front. “Say, Red, why didn’t you mention you were applying to Saffron Tech before? You’ve got to be pretty set on it if you’re willing to put up with my grandfather for a weekend to see it.”

Red shrugged.

“What’re your backups?”

Red shrugged again.

Blue groaned.

Mr. Oak started cheerfully talking about some of his old professor friends in Saffron, and Red felt quietly grateful he was freed from navigating more of Blue’s questions. He never knew what answers others wanted, much less ones that were honest.

Red had no idea what he wanted.

**-line break-**

Blue claimed the seat next to Red on the plane as his grandfather took one in the row behind them. Red pulled out his phone and earbuds. An elderly man snoozed in the aisle seat, out cold before the flight even began.

“You ever been on a plane before?” Blue asked.

Red shook his head, scrolling through his piles of playlists.

“I’d recommend taking some of this,” Blue said dropping a small bottle of motion sickness meds onto Red’s phone screen.

Red frowned, studying it, as Blue fell into the seat beside him. Figuring it couldn’t hurt, he took a pill, swallowing it dry.

Blue stared.

“I… I have water? If you need it,” he said, somewhat belatedly.

Red shrugged and passed the bottle back.

Blue put it back into his bag, slightly bewildered, before leaning across Red to slide open the plane window.

“Gotta watch takeoff,” he explained.

Red looked at the window curiously. They were just in front of the wing. Red felt himself drifting off, the medication immediately taking effect, as the flight attendant droned on about safety procedure. He turned back to his phone, hoping to pick a playlist soon.

“’Lo-Fi Hip-Hop Beats to Study To’?” Blue asked suddenly, eyes trained on Red’s phone screen. “Peaceful Violin? Calming Guitar Beats for Relaxation? Red, do you listen to any actual music?”

Red frowned and tilted his phone screen away from Blue.

“I’m serious. Is that all you listen to? Relaxation shit?”

“…Yes.”

“Huh. Interesting.” And Blue did, indeed, sound interested.

Red hunched his shoulders and picked a playlist. He couldn’t hold back the yawn that followed. It was late at night, too. The sun would be setting as they took off, making for a pretty view if Red was on the right side.

Blue’s eyes stayed set on Red as the plane roared to life, and Red shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, trying to focus on the window.

As the plane lifted into the air and slowly turned, Red tightened his grip on the armrests. It wasn’t that he was worried, really, he knew humans had flown airplanes for decades, it was safe – he just felt a bit uncertain.

He could feel Blue smirk next to him as Red’s knuckles whitened.

“We’ll be fine,” Blue said in a voice meant to be reassuring but mostly arrogant and amused.

“I’m well aware,” Red said, ignoring the slight shake in his voice as he watched the world shrink beneath them.

“Mkay,” Blue said, placing a hand on top of Red’s.

Red froze for a moment before forcing his gaze away from the window onto Blue, who was reaching into his bag with his other hand.

“What?” Blue asked.

Red opened his mouth, but, unsure of what to say, closed it again. He pulled his hand away instead, uncertain. Blue frowned a bit, plugging his own headphones in and turning on a (less relaxing) playlist.

The plane turned, and the sunset came into view, beautiful from above. Red hummed for a moment before glancing at Blue.

“Hm?” Blue said, lifting his headphones.

“Didn’t say anything,” said Red.

“What’re you thinking?” Blue asked.

Red paused. “Nice view.”

Blue nodded, leaning in to see out the small window better. His shoulder pushed lightly against Red’s, and Red wondered if Blue wanted him to move over to give him space. He couldn’t really do so in the cramped airplane seat.

“It is nice,” Blue agreed after a few moments, leaning back into his seat. Their shoulders still touched.

Red gulped and nodded. His body felt torn between drifting into sleep and staying wide awake with the anxiety of Blue and the flight. Exhaustion eventually won out, however, and Red felt his focus on the window grow fuzzy.

**-line break-**

“Wakey wakey, we’ve landed,” Blue whispered, his voice falling directly into Red’s ear.

Red shot up, disoriented, and Blue looked at him, a knowing smirk resting on his lips. Red could feel the imprint of Blue’s shirt fabric on his cheek, and he stared pointedly away, refusing to acknowledge the situation.

“You’re a deep sleeper,” Blue commented.

Bodies and suitcases filled the aisle, trapping Blue and Red in their seats as they waited to offboard the plane. Red rubbed at his cheek, willing the imprint to fade.

“I didn’t realize my shoulder was so comfortable.”

“You could’ve woken me up earlier,” Red mumbled, pulling out his headphones and tucking them back into his bag.

“You seemed so cozy, it would’ve been a crime,” Blue declared. He waggled his eyebrows, leaning closer to Red. Red yanked his cap down, feeling his face heat. The corners of Blue’s lips quirked upwards as he watched Red forcefully zip up his bag and clamber to his feet.

The aisle cleared enough for them to slip out minutes later, Red sticking close to Blue and Mr. Oak. The Saffron City Airport was twice the size of the one in Viridian and three times as crowded. Red silently feared separation as streams of people jostled him on either side.

Blue clapped a hand on Red’s shoulder moments later, and Red was too relieved to feel awkward.

“Blaine should be here to pick us up soon,” Mr. Oak called over his shoulder as he wove through the mass of people. Blue firmly steered Red after him until they reached the parking lot.

It was massive.

Cars, taxis, and shuttles filled lane after lane, headlights beaming in the bright night. Above, the sky was clear, black, and starless, the half-moon’s soft glow a sharp contrast from the hazy, harsh world surrounding them. The air smelled a bit like the McBurger’s parking lot; oily, smoky, unclean.

Red gulped. Blue squeezed his shoulder.

Mr. Oak led them through the streets, fearlessly standing his ground as cars screeched around him. Once they made it past the bulk of the traffic and reached another narrow sidewalk, Mr. Oak pulled out his phone and texted.

“Have you ever been to Saffron before?” Blue asked.

Red shook his head.

“A real country boy, aren’t ya?”

Red stared at his feet, quietly wishing he could have Charmeleon out with him right now. Then again, his Pokémon would likely be even more panicked than he was.

“It’s not too bad after a while,” Blue assured him. “You get used to it.”

A car, far newer than any in Pallet Town, shrieked as it braked hard in front of them. Inside, a bald man with glasses gestured at them, and Mr. Oak smiled.

“Here’s our ride!” he declared, walking around to the trunk to drop his bag off. Red and Blue followed, taking the backseat after Mr. Oak slid into the passenger. “Thank you for picking us up, Blaine. I appreciate it.”

“Of course! Anything for you, my friend,” Blaine said as he pulled back into traffic. “How was your flight? Not the best hour, was it?”

Mr. Oak shook his head. “No, but it worked best for Red and Blue, here. This way, they’ll be able to tour tomorrow and head back the morning after, giving them ample time to rest before school Monday. Isn’t that right, Blue?”

“Yep,” he said, popping the “p.”

“And you! Red, is it?” Blaine said.

Red started to nod before realizing Blaine couldn’t see him while driving. “Uh, yeah,” he said after a moment. Blue snickered.

“How’d you end up here? I’d hope Blue hasn’t been giving you too much trouble!”

Red hummed. “Mr. Oak invited me. I’m grateful to be here.”

“Samuel, you didn’t tell me you were finally brining along someone with manners!”

Mr. Oak laughed. “Red’s one of my best students. I was happy to bring him along.”

“Is that so? There much competition for the spot, back in Pallet?”

Red shrugged uncomfortably and stared out the window at the blurry, blue world around them. Buildings seemed to stretch endlessly upwards, blocking out the empty sky, replacing the stars with sparkling little windows and signs.

“He is one of the brightest young men I know,” Mr. Oak said diplomatically. “I am certain he would be successful at Saffron Tech, should he choose to attend.”

“First he’s gotta get in,” Blaine pointed out.

“He will,” Mr. Oak and Blue said in unison. Red glanced over at Blue, confused. Now it was Blue’s turn to shrug and look away.

“Say, Red, you got any Pokémon?” Blaine asked, slamming on his horn as a taxi cut them off. Red jolted.

“Yes. One. A Charmeleon.”

“ _Charmeleon?_ A Fire-type? Perfect,” Blaine declared. “That’s what I specialize in, you know. As the Cinnabar Gym Leader. I seem to be spending more time in Saffron these days, though. The university never did get rebuilt after the eruption.”

Red grimaced.

“You think you’ll train him up to a Charizard? _Those_ are some reliable Pokémon, there. Strong-willed, but if you train them right, they’re loyal forever.”

“Not sure,” Red muttered. He wished he had grabbed Charmeleon’s Pokéball out of his bag before getting in the car.

“Whaddaya mean, ‘not sure?’” Blue demanded. “That thing almost creamed a water type just last week. Don’t tell me you haven’t been training him.”

“Just when we have time. Besides, Charizard’s a Class III.”

Blaine laughed. “Pretty pragmatic, aren’t you? And Blue, don’t tell me now it was _your_ water type that got beat up!”

Blue huffed.

“If you decide to evolve him, though, come talk to me first. I’ll make sure you have a safe spot to do it. Second stage evolution can be, ah, rough on some ‘mons. How was his transition up to a Charmeleon?”

Red thought back to that day, four years ago. He and Leaf had just started high school, and Bulbasaur evolved into Ivysaur. She trained hard, back then, hoping to head to Cerulean City eventually and win her second gym badge. Red had been toying with the idea, but ultimately never tried it. Winning against the first gym with a type disadvantage was one thing, but Misty had a reputation of being overwhelmingly powerful and making the most of a damp environment.

Red was reasonable. He wouldn’t put his Charmander through a match he was destined to lose, but with high school starting, he didn’t have the time to catch and train up anyone else.

Leaf wanted to battle to get Ivysaur used to her new body, and Red happily obliged. It was a close match; closer than Red wanted to admit, but Charmander barely scraped through. He knew it was mostly because of Ivysaur’s hesitation in her charges, and the adjustment to the opening flower on her back. She would’ve trampled them, otherwise.

But Charmander hit with a Fire Fang at just the right second and emerged victorious.

And started glowing.

Red remembered panicking and darting over to his companion when Leaf yelled at him.

“Get back! He’s evolving – you don’t want to get hurt! He’s going to be confused!”

Red had nodded, forcing himself to take a step back.

Charmeleon had emerged from the bright light moments later, dizzy and confused. He immediately spewed fire out towards the grass, and Red, Leaf, and Ivysaur had to work together to put it out while Charmeleon collapsed, nostrils smoking.

Red carried him home, thanking Leaf for her help, and waited for him to come to. When he did, he jumped at Red, wrapping his longer arms around Red’s legs in an embrace. All in all, it could’ve been worse.

“He was okay,” Red said. “Just confused.”

“Good to hear! When mine evolved, oh, I must’ve been about your age then, why, my Charmeleon nearly burnt down the whole island! Almost succeeded again, five years later, as a Charizard.” Blaine snorted. “He’s quite a menace today, really. Even more hot-headed than myself. Always eager for a battle. They’ve been debating moving Charizard up to a Class II, recently. A few trainers have gotten theirs to _insane_ levels. You hear about that Leon fellow, out in Galar?”

“Yeah.”

“He’s made quite the name for himself, winning with a native Kanto Pokémon in a different region. Kinda nice to see us out on the big stage like that, even if the Charizard’s got no memories left of this place. Say, Samuel, this your turn here?”

“That it is. Chansey Hotel, should be on the left.”

“Gotcha. Aaaand, here we are.” Blaine pulled into a parking lot in front of a massive building, twice the size of any in Pallet, painted a pleasing light orange color. A cursive, neon sign proudly displayed the hotel’s name on the front of the building.

They climbed out of the car and thanked Blaine before tiredly marching into the lobby. Red could feel himself start to drift off as they stood and waited for their room key. He felt ready to drop dead after the hours of late-night travel.

Once they reached the room, he wanted nothing more than to throw himself onto one of the fluffy beds. Instead, though, he took the Oaks’ cues on unpacking a handful of his things and brushing his teeth.

“You shower at night or in the morning?” Blue asked. Red shrugged. “Well, I’d recommend going now, then,” he said, toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. “Probably want to get going early in the morning, and I usually shower when I wake up.”

Red spat out his toothpaste and rinsed his mouth before walking over to grab the small vials of shampoo and soap from his duffel bag. The Oaks cleared the bathroom moments later, dressed in pajamas.

Red showered quickly in the interest of getting to bed, embracing the added sleepiness as warm water ran over his body. Once out, he wrapped a towel around his waist and walked out to grab pajamas out of his duffel.

Mr. Oak appeared fast asleep, even with the light left on for Red, while Blue sat on the opposite bed, scrolling through his phone. He looked up as Red walked out, eyes boring into Red’s back as he pulled out a pair of linen, checkered pants and underwear. Red tried not to blush as he darted back into the bathroom to get changed. He hadn’t brought a pajama shirt, not thinking it’d be a big deal, but if Mr. Oak was in one bed and Blue was in the other…

He cursed his stupidity. Of course he’d have to share a bed. Blue probably wouldn’t be weird about it, right? He could just throw on his shirt from today. Did it even matter? Red scrubbed his hair dry with a towel before awkwardly stepping back out. Blue looked up.

“You work out?” Blue asked.

Red shrugged uncomfortably. “I can, uh, put on a shirt,” he muttered, walking over to his duffel bag.

“Don’t,” Blue said.

Red felt his face heat up as Blue laughed.

“I’m just kidding. Put one on if you want. I don’t care,” he said, setting his phone down. “Can you turn the lights off?”

Red gratefully reached for the switch. It took his eyes a while to adjust to the darkness before making his way over to Blue’s bed. He took extra care to walk around to the other side and slip in, careful not to enter Blue’s personal space.

He was out in minutes.

**-line break-**

Red woke up to the sound of Blue’s alarm next to his face, and he groaned. His head ached from resting on a hard surface all night, and he realized that underneath him was… not a pillow.

Fuck.

Shit.

“Mornin’” Blue cooed from underneath him. “Not used to that side of the bed, I take it?”

Red panicked and rolled off the bed with a start, hitting the floor with a _thud_. Mr. Oak snored loudly in the opposite bed before waking up himself while Blue laughed.

“Red,” Blue said, looking down at his mortified companion as his laughter died down. “Red. Hey, man. Hey. It’s okay.”

Red buried his face in his hands and refused to move.

“Dude. Seriously. Don’t worry about it. Don’t make it weird,” Blue said, climbing out of bed after him. “I get it. I make a good pillow.”

Red slowly willed the ground to open up beneath him and swallow him whole. Blue patted him on the head before walking into the bathroom. Red couldn’t find it in him to get up until after he hear the shower running.

He wrapped himself in a blanket and texted Leaf and his mom while he waited.

“Did you sleep well, Red?” Mr. Oak asked, stretching. He walked over to the window and opened the curtains, welcoming the view of the city.

Red nodded and tried to ignore the heat in his face.

Mr. Oak hummed as he rummaged around in his bag. “I’m going to go get myself some coffee from the lobby. Would you like any?”

“No, thanks.”

Mr. Oak nodded, and Red was alone in the room. He heard the shower turn off and kept his gaze down as the door creaked open.

“Well?” Blue said, stepping out.

“Well what?” Red asked.

“Thought I’d return the favor,” Blue shrugged, standing in front of Red, hair damp, only a towel wrapped around his waist. “If you’re going to strut around shirtless all the time, only fair I do the same, right?”

Red fought to keep his eyes locked on Blue’s.

“Uh,” Red said smartly. His face felt like it was burning from Charmeleon’s Fire Spin.

Blue smirked and walked over to his suitcase, grabbing a pair of clothes before returning to the bathroom. He swung the door open and marched out moments later, and Red took the opportunity to go get changed himself and escape the situation.

Mr. Oak had returned by the time he finished, armed with a cup of coffee.

**-line break-**

Red might’ve been able to focus on the tour more if Blue didn’t hover so maddeningly close by his side. The tour guide seemed nice; a bright girl with shining blue hair and a white cap, full of excitement for every stop they made. Blue ensured to always ask questions, an easy smile on his face as he did so, leaning ever so slightly further into Red’s space as he did so.

Red was, to say the least, really goddamn confused.

Blue had to be doing this on purpose, but Red couldn’t figure out the point. He was being made fun of, that much he was almost certain, but he couldn’t figure out the joke.

He felt like this before in middle school, when Ben constantly undid Red’s backpack straps and stole his pencils, laughing whenever Red called him out on it. Ben didn’t stop until their freshmen year, either.

But… Blue wasn’t doing anything actually causing Red an inconvenience. He was just being weird. And he’d tried to reassure Red this morning when Red had woken up on him.

Red sighed and tried to refocus. He was here to learn about the school, not to puzzle out his coworker.

He did like the school. Plenty of Pokémon roamed the grounds alongside their trainers, with Bellsprout and Gloom resting in the sun while a Jigglypuff sang from a tree. The buildings varied in architecture, some modern, shining glass monuments while others old, sturdy brick with elegant arches and pillars.

It felt grand, yet homey and warm.

It was almost easy to forget they were in the middle of the city; no streets cut through the main campus, giving it the feel of one major connected village, outside of the noisy bubble of Saffron.

“Next up is our Battle Box,” their tour guide said cheerfully. “Pokémon play a major role in our campus life. Outside of all the related majors and research, we have our very own Saffron Tech League! We have single league in the fall and doubles in the spring, and our top 8 go on to compete with other universities around the world. We’ve kept a solid streak of staying in the top 5 universities in the world for the past decade, the only school in Kanto to make it that far!” She grinned. “I’ve been part of the league since my freshman year, and it’s been an incredible experience. We’re open to trainers of all levels and backgrounds, and over winter break we have sponsored trips to help new trainers catch Pokémon. We also have a good relationship with the breeders down near Vermillion, which most people opt for.”

Blue nudged Red lightly as they entered the Battle Box building. A mix of dark blue brick and stained glass, it looked almost religious from the outside. Inside was a wide battlefield surrounded by thick plexiglass. It looked barely scratched and extremely transparent. Two wide trainer stands hung halfway up, jutting into the plexiglass box, with a neat staircase behind them.

The arena itself was made up of hard-packed dirt with grass growing in spirals from each corner. Shallow ponds sat underneath each trainer stand as well. The entire structure towered to what looked like four or five stories tall, giving Pokémon plenty of room for flight.

Blue whistled while Red gaped.

Red had only ever been in an official arena once, and that was eight years ago when he battled Brock. It was roughly two thirds the size of this and far more beat up.

“Do either of you have a Pokémon with you?” the tour guide asked excitedly.

Red nodded, hand dropping to his pocket to pull out Charmeleon’s Pokéball. The tour guide grinned.

“That’s great! If you’d like, I can take you inside. If they’re trained well, try having them attack the wall as hard as they can. This material was engineered by a handful of alumni a decade ago; it’s a sort of reinforced plexiglass, far less prone to scratching and fogging, unlike the current standards for the Kanto league. They’ve started adopting it in Kalos already!”

Red released Charmeleon once they were inside the box, and Charmeleon froze for a moment in the unfamiliar environment before looking to Red questioningly. Red gestured to the wall and snapped his fingers, offering a reassuring grin. Charmeleon immediately walked over to the wall and roared his strongest Dragon Breath. The burning blue smoke deflected back into the arena, the wall remaining unscathed as before. Red clapped, and Charmeleon tried a Slash and Fire Fang, still to no avail.

He turned back to Red questioningly, and Red opened his arms, inviting him back over.

“Good job,” he muttered, reaching for the Pokéball.

“Oh, if he’s _that_ well-behaved, he can stay out for the rest of the tour,” the guide said, sounding impressed. “Have you considered joining the league? Do you have any badges? That Charmeleon looks great.”

Red shrugged. The tour guide blinked.

“Well, alright. If you end up at Saffron Tech, though, let me know! We would love to have you. But anyways, the point is normal plexiglass would be completely opaque from a direct Dragon Breath like that. This is still completely clear!”

Mr. Oak hummed as they continued the tour elsewhere, and Blue seemed to hover closer. Red felt a bit awkward for having Charmeleon out when Blue hadn’t brought any Pokémon with him, but he tried to ignore the feeling and appreciate the chance to show Charmeleon their potential new home.

If he got in, of course.

And found a way to pay for it.

**-line break-**

“I must say, Red, you seem close with your Charmeleon,” Mr. Oak said as they sat down for lunch. He and Blue both had interviews scheduled with admissions representatives in the afternoon, and they were treated to a meal at the campus center cafeteria beforehand. “I hadn’t realized you took such a shine to training.”

Red shrugged as he bit into his sandwich. Charmeleon had been gifted a plate of poffins by a rather charmed lunch server, and he was happily munching away at Red’s side.

“You know, there are lots of scholarships available for aspiring trainers, too,” Mr. Oak continued. “Many that Blue has been applying to already. Have you considered battling at the collegiate level?”

Red honestly hadn’t known it was such a big thing. Oh sure, Viridian State held matches every now and then that Red attended as a child, but he didn’t realize there was a full-on collegiate league. He’d been so concerned with trying to find schools with financial aid and decent programs that he’d almost completely overlooked anything else.

He shrugged again, looking down at Charmeleon.

“They give permits, too, to trainers in the league,” Blue said, as if reading his mind. “You can have up to a Class II Pokémon on campus with league approval. I mean, not out roaming on campus, but they’re allowed out in training grounds and the Battle Box. Pretty sure there’s rules too about storage and ball seals, but they’re allowed.”

“I must say, Red, if I had known you had such a passion for training I would have said this much earlier,” Mr. Oak added.

“You only saw Charmeleon attack a wall,” Red muttered.

Mr. Oak chuckled. “I suppose. But I tend to have an eye for these kinds of things, I suppose. Many years travelling and studying the relationship between Pokémon and trainers makes you more… aware of these things. It is apparent that you have built a lot of trust with Charmeleon, a feat many trainers often struggle with when it comes to the more aggressive types. I had suspected a bit before after our conversations last night, but seeing you two together really makes me think you could be successful as a trainer.”

Red felt his face heat up as he set his sandwich down. Blue grinned at him.

“Meanwhile,” Mr. Oak said, turning to his grandson, “you could take some tips from him. Your relationship with your Pokémon needs some work. I understand you haven’t had as much time as normal with college applications and whatnot, but I often fear you may have taken on too many too soon.”

Blue shrunk in his chair a bit, smile deflating. Red stared at the table.

“Saffron Tech is competitive. If you want to be considered for trainer scholarships, you’ll need to work _hard_ at it.”

**-line break-**

Red stepped out of his interview, chest tight with worry. He had forced himself to talk, just as his mom had instructed, and they’d gone through countless practice questions and answers before he came here.

He was never much of a talker, though, and as much as he tried, he felt like everything he said came out weird and unnatural. He probably sounded like an idiot, empty-headed and stammering. An awkward loser. Red rolled Charmeleon’s Pokéball between his hands as he took a seat in the admissions building lobby, waiting for Blue. Mr. Oak had gone off to get some fresh air and catch up with a friend during all this, probably wanting to give his grandson some space after lunch.

Blue would be acing his interview, Red knew. He was just so personable and talkative. It would be hard for someone like him to struggle in this kind of situation.

Red groaned and pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes. He had thought the worst of his anxieties were over now that written applications were in, but… maybe not.

**-line break-**

“I can sleep on the chair,” Red offered that evening as he and Blue prepared for bed. Mr. Oak was in the lobby, chatting away with yet another friend from Saffron.

“I told you, it’s fine,” Blue said. “You don’t need to feel bad about it. I don’t care.”

Red shifted uncomfortably, eyes darting between the bed and the stiff armchair. He had left on his t-shirt from the day, this time, too. He really didn’t want a repeat of this morning.

“And if you normally sleep shirtless, that’s _fine,_ ” Blue emphasized. “It’s not a big deal. I swear. You don’t need to make a big deal out of this.”

Red stared at his feet.

“Good grief. Get in bed. Stop fussing about it.”

Red stayed still. Blue groaned before grabbing him by the shoulders and shoving him onto the mattress. Red awkwardly pushed himself up, looking at Blue for a moment before caving and climbing under the covers. Blue went to switch out the light.

“Stop making it weird,” he muttered as he walked back to the bed. “Seriously. And take the side you normally sleep on.”

Red rolled over, and after a moment of deliberation, stripped his shirt off and rolled it up before chucking it across the room in the general direction of his duffel bag. Blue heaved a sigh of relief before climbing in behind him.

**-line break-**

Red woke up to Blue’s alarm once again, and the heavy feeling of a warm body pressed against his.

He froze as Blue stirred behind him, lifting his chin up from Red’s shoulder.

“Fuck,” Blue yawned, and Red tried to ignore the chills that raced down his spine. Blue lazily reached over him and squeezed the side button on the phone, silencing the alarm. “Too early,” he muttered, nuzzling his nose back into Red’s hair. His breath was soft and warm against the back of Red’s neck, and his arm slung over Red’s side and squeezed against his chest felt oddly pleasant and reassuring.

Really, Red thought. This wasn’t a bad experience.

Except Red did not ask for this, and Blue did not know this was happening.

Moments later, Blue froze.

“ _Fuck,_ ” he said, far more emphasis. He rolled back and scrambled up into a sitting position, rubbing his eyes viciously. “Fuck, shit, Red, I’m sorry.”

“What are we sorry for?” Mr. Oak groaned from the opposite bed, sitting up.

God. His teacher was sleeping across from them as they snuggled in their sleep. What the fuck. What the actual fuck was this trip.

“Nothing,” Blue and Red muttered in unison.

“Hmph. Well, I asked Blaine to meet us out front in an hour. Go get ready.”

Red stared at his lap while Blue darted into the bathroom to shower. Mr. Oak got up and walked downstairs for morning coffee, as per usual.

**-line break-**

Red opted to sit next to Mr. Oak on the flight home, hoping to escape another awkward situation with Blue. Blue looked rather lonely by himself, but Red found himself making easy enough conversation with Mr. Oak about the school.

**-line break-**

“You got a night shift this weekend?” Leaf asked as they stretched in time with their Pokémon.

Red shook his head, pressing his fingers into the ground. He breathed deeply, feeling the pull through his calves. He’d been offered the shifts Friday and Saturday night again, but he felt weird about it. He knew Blue would be there at least one night, and while he liked Blue, he worried things would be awkward after the trip to Saffron. Really, all his interactions with Blue had felt confusing and difficult, and while he liked the idea of getting to know Blue better, he worried more about navigating through… whatever they went through in Saffron.

They finished stretching and moved onto breathing exercised. Red and Leaf had researched that morning how to adapt the practice for Ivysaur, who didn’t know any breath-related moves. Turned out that the flower on Ivysaur’s back could relax with the rest of her body, and the practice could help her open it more quickly.

Researching kind of made Red wish he had another Pokémon again. He loved Charmeleon deeply, but there was so much to know and learn about others.

He thought back again to the Saffron Tech Pokémon League. The day after they returned, Red spent all of lunch researching collegiate leagues and requirements. It was something he’d like to do, he decided. He didn’t know if he would be good enough to perform at Saffron’s level, and teams of at least three were required to compete in tournaments.

“What’s on your mind?” Leaf asked.

Red shrugged.

“Did anything happen on your trip with Oak and his grandson?” Leaf pressed. He’d told her his thoughts on the school and the league, which she hadn’t considered too much before. She seemed interested in trying it, though, and resolved to continue training Ivysaur throughout the school year.

“His grandson’s my coworker,” Red said.

“Oh? Was it Blue?”

Red nodded.

“That’s funny. Is he nice?”

Red shrugged. “He’s… confusing.”

“He wasn’t a dick or anything, was he?”

“No? I don’t think so,” Red mumbled, breaking rhythm. Charmeleon hiccupped in front of him. “Sorry, buddy,” he muttered as Charmeleon shot him an unimpressed look. They counted down and resumed, this time Red focusing more on his Pokémon. Ivysaur seemed to be doing well, too, though Red had a feeling he would have to incinerate all the Stun Spore in the air soon before it blew anywhere.

Actually, they should do that now.

“Leaf, Ivysaur, move,” he ordered, and Leaf glanced at the cloud of powder before obeying, Ivysaur right on her heels. Red snapped, and Charmeleon immediately blew fire in its direction. The spores disappeared within seconds, leaving only a faint smoke in their place.

“Did you say Blue worked the night shift?” Leaf asked as they moved on to sprints. Red did _not_ understand how she managed to hold a conversation in the middle of training.

“Yeah.”

“Are you avoiding him?”

Red also did not understand how she managed to read him so well.

“Maybe?”

“Did he say something weird?”

Red shook his head. “He just…” Well. He didn’t exactly want to tell Leaf about the fact that they woke up cuddling twice and that Blue hovered over his shoulder the entirety of the tour and made comments about Red’s shirtlessness.

Leaf waited patiently for his answer. Or maybe she was finally just breathing hard enough to not say anything.

"I think he was making fun of me,” Red said at last, though he wasn’t sure it was true.

“For what?”

“No idea.”

“What did he do?”

Red shrugged as they transitioned again. Ivysaur practiced lifting herself up off the ground with her vines while Charmeleon got to work climbing the nearby tree. Once upon a time, Red would join him, but tree climbing proved to only grow more challenging as he got older. He tried to not feel too guilty for it.

“He was in my personal space a lot,” Red said. “We had to share a bed, and woke up in a weird position, and so I offered to take the chair the next night, but he insisted I didn’t? And he made a big point of,” Red paused, crinkling his nose. He couldn’t figure out the right words. “I sleep shirtless. He made a big deal out of it, and then said it wasn’t a big deal, and I put a shirt on because I felt weird about it, and then he made a big deal about that. He also made a big point of walking around shirtless one morning.”

Leaf blinked. “What?”

Red shrugged, feeling his face heat. “It was just weird.”

“He walked around shirtless with his grandfather there?”

“No, Mr. Oak was usually down in the lobby for coffee or whatever.”

“Ah. Well that makes it slightly less weird, I guess. But… _you_ walked around shirtless with two people you barely knew?”

Red shrugged. “Just right before bed. I didn’t walk around.”

“Ah.”

Red nodded.

“That’s still all kinda awkward, though.”

“No shit.” Leaf watched as Ivysaur expertly swung on a low-hanging branch from her vines. “Are you sure he wasn’t just doing a really shitty job of hitting on you?”

Red blinked. “Uh.”

“I mean, I could be completely misreading here. Or maybe it’s just the ‘ _and there was only one bed!’_ trope corrupting me. But if he’s hovering around you and getting bothered about you wearing a shirt or not and ends up on the pro-shirtless side, sounds like he’s just, like, I dunno. He probably thinks you’re hot. He also probably doesn’t know how dense you can be sometimes.”

“Oh.” Red waved at Charmeleon, who reached the top of the tree with ease. “Am I dense?”

“Extremely.”

“Oh.”

“Do you like him at all?”

Red hummed. “He’s really pretty. And interesting. I wouldn’t mind getting to know him.”

Leaf snorted. “That’s basically a declaration of love, coming from you.”

Red shrugged. “It’s still awkward, though.”

“It’s only as awkward as you make it.”

**-line break-**

Despite Leaf’s words, Red did not take the night shift for the following weeks. Instead, he focused on school and scholarship applications. He pored over every article and how-to he could find for the collegiate leagues at each school he’d been considering, quietly crossing a few he’d been considering off his list on account of lacking one entirely.

His mom had been ecstatic that he’d found something in college he knew he wanted to do. Sure, he still had no idea what to major in or what he wanted to do post-college, but knowing he’d find his place at least somewhere on campus was reassuring.

Charmeleon clearly grew under Red’s renowned excitement for training, and he started actually seriously considering the idea of catching a second Pokémon. Unfortunately, the only ones in the area were Rattata and Pidgey, and while they evolved into solid Pokémon, he wasn’t sure they were the right addition to his team.

Truthfully, he didn’t have the time or money to take on a second Pokémon at the moment, either. That would likely have to wait until the summer.

He rambled on about all this to Leaf one afternoon. The weather had been growing colder and colder for a while now as winter crept into Pallet Town, and the pair was sitting in the library as per usual, unwilling to find the motivation to get up and walk home.

Leaf hummed. “I think you could handle a second Pokémon fine, honestly. Charmeleon could benefit a lot from helping train another Pokémon. But I agree. You’d be bored with a Rattata and Pidgey; they’re great starter Pokémon for kids, but you’re kind of an adult. And while I’m pretty sure you got a _little bit_ lucky with having such an obedient and loyal Charmeleon, you still put a ton of work into building that bond. You’d want another challenge.”

Red hummed. He had never really thought of Charmeleon as particularly challenging, but he supposed she was right.

“I’ve been looking at getting a Rock- or Water-type,” Leaf continued. “Eventually. Just to cover Ivy’s weaknesses, you know?”

He nodded.

“Also, we should head out. It’s been getting dark earlier and earlier,” Leaf added.

Red nodded and they rose to their feet. Leaf pulled on her coat and scarf while she neatly placed everything into her backpack. Red threw on a jacket and shoved his notebooks in his bag before flinging one strap over his shoulder. Leaf rolled her eyes at him, as she always did when he wore his “winter attire,” before they started walking back through the hallways of the school to the main entrance.

“Red?!”

Red and Leaf paused. They were right outside Mr. Oak’s classroom, and-

“Red, hey!” Blue said, walking up to the threshold. He was dressed nicely, as required by Charter One, in khakis and a dark blue button-up shirt. If Red had been surprised in Saffron to see him dressed in something other than the McBurger’s uniform for the first time, he was completely shocked to see him looking like this.

Leaf smirked at Red as he awkwardly waved.

“Hello,” Leaf added, sticking out her hand.

Blue studied her for a moment before shaking her hand. “Hi, I’m Blue,” he said.

“I figured,” Leaf answered.

Blue blinked.

Red shrunk.

Leaf grinned.

“Well, uh, anyways, I noticed you’ve been wimping out on the night shift the past month,” Blue said, turning his attention back to Red.

Red shrugged.

“It’s not fair to just dump it on me and Joey the whole time, you know,” Blue scolded. “There’s no way Gramps has been giving you so much work to do that you can’t spare a night a week.”

“I get tired,” Red muttered.

Blue frowned.

“I thought you said you’d take the shift next week, though. Right Red?” Leaf said pointedly. Red looked at her, eyes widening in betrayal.

Blue glanced at her, and Red could swear they were using telepathy.

“Well, I look forward to it,” Blue said, leaning back slightly.

“Do you have each other’s’ numbers, yet?” Leaf asked.

Blue shook his head. “Oddly enough, no.”

“Here.” Leaf took Blue’s phone and dialed in Red’s number. They’d memorized each other’s in middle school. Red was shocked she still remembered his.

Blue took his phone back and typed something, and Red’s phone immediately buzzed. He nodded.

“Cool. Well, we gotta get going if we’re going to get any training in before it’s too cold,” Leaf said, turning around.

Red waved again at Blue as they walked outside.

The second they made it out into the chilly, winter air, Leaf turned on him.

“You didn’t tell me he was _hot!_ ”

**-line break-**

_Blue: hey, it’s blue.  
Blue: wazzup_

Red frowned, unsure of what to say. He just got back from the park with Charmeleon and was in the middle of a physics assignment.

_Red: homework  
Blue: fascinating stuff. what homework  
Red: ap physics  
Blue: i took that last year  
Red: good 4 u  
Blue: lmk if you need help. i got a 5  
Red: i think i got it  
Blue: send me the problem ur working on we can compare answers  
Red: ???? already got leaf for that. do ur own homework?  
Blue: leaf seems nice  
Blue: she’s cute  
Red: ok_

Red scowled at the screen before turning his attention back to his assignment. So much for Leaf’s theory.

_Blue: wish i got her number too  
Red: ill ask her if she’s ok with me giving it to you_

Leaf _did_ say Blue was hot, after all. Maybe she’d like to talk to him more.

_Red: hey Blue wants ur number  
Leaf: what  
Red: idk he said youre cute  
Leaf: ?  
Red: should I give it to him  
Leaf: sure why not. what’d you get for problem 3b?  
Red: sqr rt 2g/(5a)  
Leaf: same.  
Red: neat_

Red swiped back to Blue.

_Red: her number is 555-0123  
Blue: thx  
Blue: you wanna study this weekend? after work?  
Red: study what  
Blue: what classes r u in  
Red: ap phys, bio, calc bc, microecon, lit  
Blue: we both have calc bc  
Red: i think im good on calc rn  
Blue: also lit  
Red: how do u study for lit. we just write essays. we don’t even have the same books probably.  
Blue: u guys aren’t reading great expectations or heart of darkness?  
Red: we’re doing heart of darkness  
Blue: gross that one sucks  
Blue: hot take all the lit books suck  
Red: we did life of pi. it was good.  
Blue: oh the duality of mankind and english literature_

Red snorted and went back to his homework. A few minutes later, his phone buzzed again.

_Blue: but anyways we’re studying this weekend right  
Red: i still don’t know whats being studied  
Blue: idk lit and calc. have u done ap chem?  
Red: last year  
Blue: cool I want a sanity check on some of that, too  
Red: do u not have other friends actually in the class right now  
Blue: i have plenty  
Red: sure  
Blue: fine we won’t study  
Red: i’ll go and do homework. but I have a lot to get done.  
Blue: :)_

Red stared at the happy face for a while.

**-line break-**

Joey’s advice had been horrible. The Black Raspberry Twist Beast was somehow even more disgusting than the cherry.

Blue studied him from his spot in front of the drive-thru window.

“Why do you drink those if you don’t like them?” Blue asked.

“Caffeine.”

“Just drink coffee.”

“Coffee has less caffeine and tastes just as bad.”

“Coffee tastes great.”

Red shook his head and got to work at the fryer.

“Have you thought more about where you’re going to college?” Blue asked.

Red shrugged. “Depends on where I get in.”

“Are you honestly worried any place is going to reject you?”

“…Yes?”

“Why?”

“Don’t have much going for me other than grades.” Red shrugged. “Never really joined any clubs or anything.”

Blue frowned.

Red continued to work.

“I guess that’s fair,” Blue said after a moment. “What’s your top choice?”

“Saffron Tech seems nice.”

Blue snorted. “That’s it? The highest rated technical institute in the region ‘seems nice?’ What other schools have you looked at?”

“Viridian State, Cerulean State, Cerulean Tech, Vermillion Institute of Science, uh, Lance College of Science,” Red counted each off on his fingers. “Lavender College, Lavender U, University of Kanto Pewter…”

“Ah,” Blue cut him off. “Lots of choices.”

Red shrugged. “If I get in.”

“I can’t imagine you won’t.”

“Hoping to go to a school with a league.”

“Yeah, that’d suit you well.”

Red nodded.

“Where’s Leaf going?”

“She wants to go to Snowpoint in Sinnoh,” Red said. “She’s considering Saffron Tech, though. Has a better chance at getting in than me, I think.”

“Ah.”

“Why don’t you just ask her?”

Blue shrugged. “You’re standing right there.”

“Did you text her?”

“Nah.”

“Why?”

Blue shrugged. “I dunno.”

They were interrupted by a customer, and Red stared at the clock. Four more hours. He took another sip of the energy drink after he filled the order, fighting back a yawn.

**-line break-**

Red didn’t understand why Blue wanted to study right after pulling a night shift. It was all Red could do to stay awake enough to drive over to Blue’s house and make it up the stairs without passing out.

Blue’s house was about the size of Red’s, if much more modern. Blue showed him up to his room. It had a half-made bed covered in dark red blankets and various posters of trainers and Pokémon along the walls, with a Saffron Tech pennant hanging above the window.

There was only one chair at the desk, and Red frowned.

“Where are we studying?” he asked tiredly.

Blue blinked. “Guess there’s not much space up here. Uh, the kitchen? Let me grab my things.”

Red let his eyes drift closed as he waited. They were still both in their work uniforms, minus the visors, and smelled like fried food. Red wished he’d gone home to shower first.

He followed Blue back downstairs to the kitchen. Wartortle joined them moments later, waddling in from the living room. He gently headbutted Blue as he sat down.

“I know, I know,” Blue muttered. “We’ll go later.”

Wartortle made some sort of clicking sound before climbing up onto the chair next to him and curling up.

Blue pulled out a calc textbook, the newer edition of the one Red was using.

“Alright. Have you guys started Riemann sums?”

Red tried his hardest to stay awake. He really did. He managed to get through a few practice problems with Blue and complete a bit of his own homework assignment before Blue got up to go to the bathroom, and Red let himself close his eyes once more.

He tried. Honestly.

And failed.

When he woke up, Blue was still seated next to him, pencil scratching away at crisp notebook paper. Red felt the heat of a thick blanket wrapped around his shoulders, and a dull ache in his cheekbone where it pressed against the table in his sleep.

“Mornin’,” Blue said, turning to smile at Red. “Welcome to the world of the living.”

Red blinked slowly before wiping his face, suddenly embarrassed at the drool he noticed on his paper. Blue smirked. Did Blue ever _not_ smirk?

“Sleep well?” Blue asked.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Red asked. He shrugged the blanket off so it hung over the back of the kitchen chair.

“Why would I? You seemed tired.”

Red sighed as he tried to refocus on his homework. “I should go home.”

“You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like,” Blue said. “We have plenty of food, too, if you want breakfast.”

“Uh.”

“If you want.”

Red looked at Blue, hope written all over his face, and caved.

“I’ll stay a bit longer,” Red conceded.

Blue flashed a smile before standing up. “We’ve got cereal, eggs, or toast.”

“Just toast is fine.”

**-line break-**

It became a sort of tradition after that. Blue invited Red over every Saturday morning, post-night shift, for homework and breakfast, and Red fell asleep almost every time. He wondered why Blue kept inviting him. They got plenty of work done, but no more than they could each do on their own in the same time.

Red half-expected to wake up with drawings all over his face. That seemed like a very Blue thing to do, he thought, but it never happened. They mostly just talked, Blue pushing into Red’s personal space at any given opportunity.

Blue never texted Leaf, either, which was odd.

Red started to wonder if Leaf was actually right to begin with. Maybe Blue liked him.

Red resolved to ask him at some point, but it never seemed like the right time. He almost blurted out the question at the start of shift, but the thought of being alone with Blue for hours after whatever answer he provided sounded impossible. He tried once at the end of one of their study sessions, but he felt it’d be rude to ask and then leave. He considered just texting it multiple times, but felt that’d be the coward’s way out, and the words would be permanently there to haunt him every time he opened his phone.

So Red carried on, the question burning in his mind every time Blue leaned in or looked at Red with that soft, curious look. He started to feel impossibly aware of Blue’s presence at his side or across the room, and faintly wondered if he was losing his mind.

“No,” Leaf corrected. Ivy stood next to her, wrapped up in a scarf. They were at Leaf’s house, hard at work on their end-of-term bio project. “You just like him.”

Red groaned.

“What? It’s not a bad thing. Dude, I’m like, 90% sure he likes you too. Just ask him.”

“I’ve been trying to,” Red said miserably.

“And?”

“I can’t.”

“Yes you can, idiot. Just do it. What do you have to lose?”

“I dunno. I don’t want him to stop hanging out with me.”

“I doubt he will. Either way, you’ll still be stuck on night shifts together.”

“It’ll be awkward if he hates me.”

Leaf sighed. “Red, nobody _hates_ anybody for unrequited love or crushes or whatever. That’s stupid. If I confessed to you right now that I have a crush on you, which I don’t, but pretend for a moment that I do, would you hate me?”

“…I guess not.”

“Yeah. Because that’d be stupid. He might feel guilty or uncomfortable for a while, but he’d get over it soon enough. If he rejects you, just pretend to get some other girlfriend or boyfriend a couple weeks later and he’ll forget all about it.”

“Uh.”

“Seriously.”

**-line break-**

“Here,” Blue said, handing Red a neatly wrapped present. “Merry Christmas.” They were sitting at Blue’s kitchen table once more, mugs of hot chocolate sitting in the midst of their stacks of textbooks and notebooks. Blue had on a sweater and a blanket, while Red happily existed in his standard t-shirt and jeans. Blue had expressed his disapproval over Red’s attire multiple times in the past.

_“What are you trying to prove?” he’d asked._

_“I just overheat easily,” Red would respond._

Now, Red studied the gift in confusion.

“It’s from me and my grandfather,” Blue said.

Red suddenly felt like an idiot for not getting Blue anything yet. Christmas was in a week and a half, he thought he had time. But maybe not. He hadn’t even gotten Leaf _her_ gift yet.

“You can open it now,” Blue added, somewhat impatient.

Red’s brow furrowed. “Shouldn’t we wait until I get you something?”

“You were going to get me something?”

“You got _me_ something.”

“Oh,” Blue said, “you weren’t planning on getting me anything, but now I got you something, so you feel bad and now plan to get me something?”

“No,” Red said defensively. “I just haven’t had time to get anyone anything yet.”

Blue rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Just open it.”

“You don’t want me to wait?”

“No.”

Red frowned. “Are you sure-”

“Extremely, now can you just _open the goddamn gift._ ”

Red glanced at Blue, who was impatiently tapping his fingers against the table as he watched. Red slowly picked at the tape holding the paper together, taking care to unwrap the whole thing without tearing the paper. Blue looked ready to explode.

Inside was a half-red, half-white fabric box, hinged on one side. Red carefully opened it, and inside sat a sealed Pokéball, decorated with a single lightning sticker on the top.

Red gaped.

Blue smirked.

“Come on, let’s take it outside,” Blue ordered.

“Should I- should I wait for your grandfather? If it’s from him, too,” Red said.

Blue sighed. “Yeah, fine. I’ll go see if he’s in his office.” Blue darted upstairs while Red waited, closely examining his gift. He and Blue had talked before about Red’s desire for a second Pokémon, and all the types he’d been considering. Red silently wondered what it was. A Magnemite, maybe? Or a Voltorb or Electabuzz? Elekid?

Blue returned moments later, Mr. Oak trailing behind him.

“I see my grandson has imparted his impatience unto you,” Mr. Oak said drily. “It’s nowhere near Christmas yet.”

“I insisted,” Blue said. “Now, come on!”

They trio walked outside, and Red removed the seal before releasing the Pokémon outside. A large rodent, about a foot tall, slowly formed in front of them.

Red crouched, staring face-to-face with a fuzzy, yellow Pikachu.

“He’s aggressive,” Mr. Oak warned just as the creature’s red cheeks sparked.

Red ducked as he shot an electric bolt right above his head and started laughing. Mr. Oak sighed again as Blue grinned down at him.

“He’s awesome, right? I thought he’d be great to get along with Charmeleon!”

“This Pikachu was part of my lab for a while,” Mr. Oak said, sounding resigned. “It became apparent he would be happier under the guidance of a skilled trainer. Now, I would recall him and wait until you have your Charmeleon with you to-”

Red stepped forward as Pikachu started crackling once more, slowing reaching out his hand. The electric mouse darted forward to sniff it, ears pulled back in an aggressive stance the entire time. Not quite pleased or displeased, he released another electric shock, for weaker, directly at Red.

Red laughed louder, sitting back on his heels.

“Red, don’t be stupid, recall him,” Mr. Oak ordered. “He could actually hurt you. You need another Pokémon out with you for this introduction.”

Red complied, frowning at Pikachu’s growl as he pulled out the Pokéball. Feeling slightly guilty, he recalled him.

He turned to face the Oaks, Blue smiling as Red had never seen him smile before, Mr. Oak looking tired but content.

“It is best to have a trained Pokémon with you as you first interact with a new one,” Mr. Oak reminded him. “Please be careful. I do not want to be responsible for your death.”

“Nice hair,” Blue added.

Static electricity crackled and popped as Red ran his hand through his now-extremely pointy hair, and he couldn’t help but smile back.

“Thank you so much,” he said, hoping he sounded as genuine and appreciative as he felt.

“No problem!” Blue said. “You need another Pokémon if you’re going to join a league.”

Mr. Oak nodded. “Like I said before, Red, you have a great potential as a trainer. It is my pleasure to help you however I can on that journey. Just treat that Pikachu with the same love and respect you’ve given Charmeleon, and I’m certain all will play out well for you. Now, I have some projects to grade,” he said, turning to go back inside.

Blue and Red were left outside alone. Snowflakes drifted down, one by one, many catching in Blue’s brown hair. He was still smiling, all bright white teeth and sparkling eyes. Red felt his heart rate pick up.

“I had never heard you laugh before,” Blue said after a moment. “Good to know Pokémon’s the fastest way to your heart. I had a hunch.”

Red looked down at the Pokéball in his hand, unsure of what to say to that. He tried to fight back the heat rising to his face. “This means a lot to me,” he said at last.

“Good.”

“I can’t give you a gift as nice as this.”

Blue stepped forward. “Get into Saffron Tech so we can battle properly in a league. That’s all I ask.”

**-line break-**

Red loved Pikachu. Absolutely adored him.

Charmeleon had been a bit jealous at first, and a bit angry when Pikachu first tried to lunge at Red again, but Red was ready. He had on some rubber boots and a thick jacket. It wouldn’t be enough to fully stop a loose Thunderbolt, but it’d at least weaken it some. Charmeleon ensured that no spark ever came close to his trainer, though.

Red spent every day the first week of winter break out with Pikachu and Charmeleon in the park. Pikachu had been uninterested in their training regime at first, unwilling to interact with neither Red nor Charmeleon, but Red constantly left the offer open. When Pikachu was bored, he let him roam the nearby area, only intervening if he came close to other people. He offered him everything he could think of; treats, toys, water, boxes, whatever came to mind.

It took a while for the electric mouse to warm up to him at all, but Red didn’t mind. He’d give the little guy all the time in the world if he could.

At the end of the week, Pikachu joined them on their initial jog, quickly darting ahead and behind, causing Red to almost trip on him when he sped between his ankles. He accepted food from Red’s hand that night, too, and Red took the risk of letting him sleep outside his Pokéball. It paid off. The next morning, Pikachu didn’t even spark at him when he got up and went downstairs for breakfast.

By the end of break, he could probably work out some of his attacks and start training. He knew Pikachu already knew Thunderbolt and suspected that he knew at least Double Team or Agility based off his occasionally extreme speeds. He dedicated all of his free time to studying the mouse online, almost forgetting about his anxious wait for college decision letters.

Blue texted him often, and Red often found himself at a near loss for words out of gratitude. He’d given Blue a collection of Pokéball stickers and seals imported from Sinnoh at Leaf’s suggestion, and figured that while it would never measure up to Pikachu, it’d at least be something unique. Blue was a flashy person, anyways, and the stickers reflected that.

Blue had been delighted. Red tried not to smile too much every time he saw Wartortle’s Pokéball covered in shining bubble stickers that exploded out in grand fashion every time Wartortle was released.

_Blue: how’s the electric rat today  
Red: good! going to test for moves tomorrow probably  
Blue: wow that’s fast  
Blue: thought it’d be a month before he’d be ready for that  
Red: yeah trying not to push too hard. he’s getting friendlier, tho. Joined us on a run yesterday.  
Blue: incredible  
Blue: gramps gave me a gift, too._

Attached was a picture of a fluffy Eevee, brown coat shining. Her face was barely visible behind the fluffy mane around her neck. Red smiled.

_Blue: she’s super tame. Gramps wants me to try to evolve her into an espeon or umbreon. I’m kind feeling umbreon, eventually.  
Red: she’s cute  
Blue: incredibly. she’s also going to kick pikachu’s ass. once i convince her to train lol  
Red: i don’t think so.  
Blue: mhm_

Red looked over at Pikachu, who was cautiously approaching a dozing Charmeleon. His tail jutted back and forth, mischief sparkling in his eyes.

“Hey,” Red said softly, and Pikachu looked back at him. “Careful, now.”

Pikachu’s cheeks crackled, but he gloomily changed course away from Charmeleon. He hopped up next to Red on the bed, the closest he’d willingly come outside of training yet. Red stayed still, determined to give him space. Pikachu curled up, cheeks still sparking, and watched.

All of a sudden, Red’s phone started ringing, and Pikachu discharged a small shock to Red, who dropped his phone. Charmeleon got up and immediately gave Pikachu a harsh glare, and the mouse settled back down as Red picked up his phone and answered it.

_“Red!”_ Leaf shrieked into the phone. “Saffron Tech decisions are out!”

“What?!” Red almost tripped in his rush to reach his computer.

“Check your e-mail!”

“Did you get in?”

“Yes! Did you?”

“Hold on,” Red ordered, setting his phone down as he quickly logged in and scanned his inbox. In the midst of the spam sat the e-mail. He hovered over it. “I’m too nervous,” he said at last.

“Fucking just do it! Come on!”

Heart pounding, Red forced himself to breathe. The e-mail just provided him a link to his student portal, and Red shook as he clicked it.

His jaw dropped.

“Mom!” he shouted, jumping out of his chair and running downstairs. Leaf yelled at him through the phone. “Mom, I got in!”

She stood in the kitchen, humming as she read a book spread open on the counter.

“Got into where?” she asked.

“Saffron Tech,” Red said, and she sharply looked up.

“ _Really?_ Red, that’s incredible! Oh, honey, I knew you could do it!” she pulled her son into her arms, smiling. “I knew you would! You never give yourself enough credit, Red! They would be _so lucky_ to have you. And they had the league you liked the most, right?”

Red nodded, choking back a sob.

“Did they say anything about financial aid?”

“Not yet.”

She nodded. “Well, once they do, we can make a decision, okay? And if they give you a decent package, you’re going there. I don’t care what you say, you’ve been more excited about this school than any of the others you’ve looked at. If we can afford it, you’re going. No buts.”

Red nodded again as she released him.

“Did you tell your friends yet?” she asked kindly.

Red froze before darting back upstairs, where Leaf’s voice still came through the phone.

“I got in,” he told her.

“I fucking knew it,” she snapped. “You told your mom?”

“Yeah.”

“Sweet.”

His phone beeped, and he frowned. “Oh, Blue’s calling me.”

“Go tell him,” Leaf ordered, and abruptly hung up.

Red tentatively pushed “accept,” and Blue’s voice immediately poured through.

“Well, Red, I suppose you can guess what Saffron Tech told me today,” he said haughtily. “Accepted, no problem. Have you checked yet?”

“Yeah,” Red said. “I got in.”

Blue laughed. “Of course. Nothing less would suit my greatest rival, of course.”

“We’re rivals?” Red asked.

“Yes. Have you committed yet? I committed immediately.”

Red paused. “Did you hear back on any financial aid yet?”

“No.”

“Oh. I’m waiting for that.”

“Ah. Well, let me know when you do, then.”

“Yeah.”

“How’s Pikachu?”

Red looked over at his newest companion, currently occupying himself by chewing on Red’s bedframe.

“He’s doing well,” Red said. “I told you already.”

“Yeah, yeah. Has he been shocking you, still?”

“Every now and then. Never badly. Just warnings.”

“Well, that’s good. Gramps was unsure if he should be given to a trainer, but I dunno. He just kinda stood out to me as needing someone like you.”

Red didn’t know what to say to that.

“You said you’re training tomorrow? It’s supposed to be icy and snowy all day,” Blue continued after a moment.

“Yeah.”

“In the park?”

“Yeah.”

“Would you mind some company?”

Red thought about that. He did want to see Blue again, but… “I dunno if Pikachu would be okay with more people. I don’t want to overwhelm him.”

“We’ll keep our distance. What time?”

“Probably in the morning. 9-ish or so.”

“See ya there!”

The phone clicked, and Red turned back to his acceptance letter to read it one more time.

**-line break-**

School started again, and Red had to cut back on his work hours to make time for studying and training. He had tried cutting back on training first, but between Pikachu and Charmeleon’s constant restlessness, he realized he’d either have to leave them in their Pokéballs or spend more time training to stop them from burning the whole house down.

Pikachu, by the time break ended, almost refused to leave Red’s side. He nearly missed his first day back since the electric mouse kept trying to follow him out the door. He was still ready to shock Red at any moment, and only obeyed during training when he felt like it, but he seemed almost as attached to his trainer as Red was to him. But he definitely wasn’t ready to be left alone all day.

He was used to Red leaving in the late afternoons and evenings for work, and used to training in the morning. No wonder he was confused at the change of pace.

Red didn’t want to recall him, though, so he had to have Charmeleon hold him back while Red escaped to school and hoped his mom could handle the situation.

On some level, Red was flattered. An odd sense of pride that such a touchy Pokémon had put his trust in Red and cared to stay by his side.

Red ran home during lunch each day to check up on Pikachu, much to Leaf’s amusement.

“Poor Blue probably didn’t realize giving you your heart’s desire would drive you further away from him,” she teased after Red mentioned he was skipping his weekly study session to spend extra time with Pikachu. “Why don’t you just bring him with you? He’s met Blue before. You guys train together, right?” The library was a bit more crowded in the second semester, with more students crowding along the tables.

Red flipped a page of _Beowulf,_ shrugging. “Pikachu’s not a big fan of Blue. Or anyone, really. Well, actually, he does like Eevee. I could text Blue about it.”

“I like that you don’t even deny you like each other anymore,” Leaf said, resting her chin on her palm. “You guys dating yet?”

“Uh-h,” Red stammered, face warming. “No.”

“Have you guys _talked_ about it?”

“…No.”

“Why not?”

Well. It wasn’t that Red hadn’t tried. He tried to ask Blue about whatever the hell was going on between them multiple times, but it never came out right. He always ended up changing the subject before he finished his question. And it just seemed like bad timing.

Second semester of senior year. They were both about to start off on new adventures in the fall, and Red had no idea if they’d end up at the same university or not. Would Blue even want to stay together, if they did? He’d be meeting so many new people in university, why would he want to stay with Red? It was so much easier to maintain friendships than romantic relationships after graduation, Red figured.

“Bad timing,” Red said.

Leaf rolled her eyes. “If you say so.”

But Red did text Blue about bringing Pikachu with him to study, and Blue was more than happy to accommodate.

**-line break-**

“That’s cute,” Blue said, leaning against Red as they watched their Pokémon. Pikachu and Eevee were curled up together, Eevee’s fluffy tail intertwined with Pikachu’s jagged, stiff one, their cheeks pressed together as they slept.

“Yep,” Red agreed, marveling at how his tiny ferocious beast could be so sweet to another Pokémon.

“He didn’t strike me as the cuddly type,” Blue continued. They were seated on the couch, some MewTube video on Taylor Series playing on the TV before them. Blue had insisted they watch it, since Taylor series were “the worst thing that ever happened to his calc grade” and his teacher “couldn’t explain it half as well as the internet.” Which, of course, gave them an excuse to sit close together.

Red was overly aware of Blue’s arm on the cushion behind his shoulders, of where Blue’s leg gently pressed against his.

He should say something. He should really, _really_ say something.

“Same here,” Red said. “He stays close, but he’d probably electrocute me for real if I tried to hold him.”

Blue seemed to hesitate for a moment, staring straight ahead as a blush crept up to his cheeks. “Well,” he said, falsely confident, “you could hold me, instead.”

Red’s face matched his name as he tried to formulate a coherent response. No words coming to mind, he just reached for Blue’s hand and pulled his arm down from the couch onto Red’s shoulders. Red pulled his legs up onto the couch and leaned further against Blue’s side, his head resting where Blue’s shoulder met his chest. Blue cautiously squeezed him, pulling him slightly closer.

“Kinda wanted to do this for a while,” Blue said after a moment.

“Yeah,” Red whispered.

“Since, uh, the tour at Saffron.”

“…Yeah.”

Blue buried his face in Red’s hair. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I dunno. I was worried you thought I was weird after you started avoiding me after Saffron.”

“Didn’t really know what was going on. Leaf had to help me figure it out.”

“I thought you were dating her at first.”

“I thought you were using me to talk to her.”

Blue laughed softly. “No, I was trying to figure out for sure if you were together or not.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Leaf said I’m dense.”

“She’s right.”

“Thanks.”

Blue grabbed the remote with his free hand. “Wanna watch a movie?”

“But Taylor Series are so interesting,” Red said drily.

“Come on,” Blue laughed. “Before Gramps comes home.” He nuzzled his way down to Red’s face, and Red could feel Blue’s breath across his lips.

As if on cue, the front door creaked open, and Red and Blue jumped apart in a panic. Pikachu lazily opened an eye, and Red tried to calm down.

“Good afternoon, boys,” Mr. Oak said as he walked in. “Could you help with the groceries? Wait, where are- Oh, the living room. Taking a break from studying?”

“Yeah,” Blue said hurriedly. “Come on, Red, let’s go get the groceries.” He jumped off the couch and darted outside, Red awkwardly getting up to follow him.

**-line break-**

“About fucking time,” Leaf said. Ivysaur was shooting leaves across the snowy field as Pikachu and Charmeleon darted in and out between them. Every now and then, she’d land a hit.

“Yeah.”

“Has Blue met your mom yet?”

“Once.”

“Have you told her?”

“Not yet.”

“But she knows you’re gay?”

“Yeah.” That had been a conversation back in sophomore year. Red hadn’t even been the one to bring it up. He’d barely even _thought_ about it before his mom said something.

Leaf sighs. “Guess this means I need to find a real prom date, now.”

“What?”

“I was going to drag you along, doofus,” Leaf said. “Now I have to try to actually find someone.”

Red blinked. “I didn’t even think about prom.”

“Please let me help you plan your promposal to Blue,” Leaf said suddenly, turning to face him. “Oh my god I have so many cute ideas.”

“…Why not use one yourself?”

“I don’t have anyone to ask yet. Plus, you’re not going to plan _shit_ on your own.”

Red frowned.

“Actually, Blue’ll probably ask you. Wait, will you go to his school’s prom or ours or both?”

“I have literally no idea. I wasn’t even planning on going. And it’s not for another three months.”

“Come on, Red. You have to go. It’s senior prom. Just one night.”

Red shrugged.

**-line break-**

Red had tried every flavor of Beast. They were all terrible. Completely terrible. He still forced himself to drink as much as possible though as he started his second night shift in a row.

At least Blue’d be there tonight. They had to cancel their morning study session, which had grown gradually less productive over the past few weeks, as Blue had to run some errands for his grandfather.

They still hadn’t kissed, which Red wasn’t sure made him relieved or disappointed. Mr. Oak was always too present, and while Red had a hunch he knew what was going on, Blue still hadn’t actually told him anything.

Blue marched in moments later, coffee in hand. He grinned at Red as he set himself up at the drive-thru. Over the next hour, the few people working up front left, leaving them alone.

“I’ll clean the bathrooms,” Red offered, pulling a basket out of the fryer.

“Whoa, hold on,” Blue said, crossing the kitchen over to Red. “You don’t have to ditch me _immediately._ Have you no heart?”

Red grinned. “Well,” he said, “we’re still _working_ , so I’m afraid you’ll just have to wait.”

Blue stepped forward, corning Red against the counter. He leaned in so their noses almost touched, his arms on either side of Red’s body. “I don’t wanna,” he whispered.

Red felt his pulse race as he drowned in Blue’s eyes. “Too bad,” he whispered, reaching up to lightly jab Blue in the side. Blue flinched and stepped back, frowning.

“Too much?” he asked.

Red shrugged. “I gotta clean the bathrooms first. If we get distracted now, _immediately_ , then we’re never going to survive the shift.”

Blue groaned. “We have different definitions of survive.”

Red stuck his tongue out at him as he walked out.

When he returned, Blue was sulking at the window, fiddling with his phone.

“Welcome back,” Blue drawled, “my fellow coworker. In your absence, I have accomplished work. And now that you are here, I will continue to work.”

Red rolled his eyes and walked over to Blue, leaning against the shelf opposite him.

“What is this, coworker?” Blue demanded with a mock gasp. Sarcasm seemed to drip off each of his words. “Why are you here, in _my_ station, when you should be at yours, where you can work?”

Red raised his eyebrows. Blue’s mask refused to crack.

“Thought I’d say hi,” Red said at last.

“No saying hi. That is for boyfriends.” Red blushed a bit. This was the first time Blue had actually acknowledged their status verbally. “We are coworking right now, and cannot distract ourselves with such frivolities. We are, after all, dedicated to the mission of this McBurger’s, and only our best efforts can be accepted,” Blue lectured. “If we dare stray into the world of passion and romance, the hungry drunks at 2am may receive subpar service! Why, they may receive the wrong drinks, or have to wait an extra three minutes for their onion rings!”

“You’re right,” Red said, walking back over to the grill and fryers. He mentally started counting.

_One, two, three, four-_

“I’m bored,” Blue declared, ditching the window again to go bother Red. “You win.” He wrapped his arms around Red’s waist and rested his chin on Red’s shoulder, the headset pressing against Red’s ear. “Can I do this?”

“Sure,” Red said. “Watch the fryer, though.” Red squirmed in his grasp to bend down and pull a bag of fries out of the freezer. He unceremoniously dumped them into an empty basket, all while Blue refused to loosen his grip. Blue buried his nose into Red’s neck as Red stirred everything around with tongs.

“You smell like McBurger’s,” Blue muttered, lips moving against Red’s skin. Red shivered.

“I wonder why,” Red said sarcastically.

“Yeah, I can’t figure it out,” Blue agreed. He squeezed Red tighter. “Such a mystery.”

A customer pulled up to the window, and Blue let go, looking as if it physically pained him to do so.

“Welcome to McBurger’s,” he said cheerfully once he reached the window. “What can I get for you tonight?”

It was only a burger, fries, and a drink, but Blue walked over to help Red with it anyways. His form of “helping” mostly involved standing too close to Red and getting in the way, but Red didn’t mind. It wasn’t like the customer would notice if it took an extra minute to get everything out at this hour.

The second the customer drove off, Blue was back at Red’s side.

“Hello again,” he said. Red pulled out a rag to start to clean the counter. “I can think of about twenty more entertaining ways to spend our time right now.”

Red tried to ignore the blood rushing up his neck and stared dutifully down at the counter.

“Many involve this table here, too,” Blue continued. “Red, have I ever told you that the McBurger’s uniform really brings out your eyes?” He reached over and gently grabbed Red’s chin, turning his head to face Blue. “It’s quite a look.”

“I’ll bet,” Red said, drily.

“Unfortunately, I can barely appreciate you like this, since I’ve had the pleasure of seeing you shirtless in bed,” Blue continued, “and I’m not sure anything will live up to that.” He paused, and Red felt like his face was burning up. “Actually, I can think of a few things that could.”

“Blue,” Red started. He stopped, realizing he had nothing to say to that.

Blue smirked. Red gulped.

“I had no idea how easy it would be to make you blush,” Blue said after a moment. “This is great.”

“Fuck you.”

“Gladly.”

Red tried to scowl as he yanked his head back to look at the table while Blue laughed. Another car pulled up, and Blue returned to his station. He sounded a bit impatient as he talked to the customer. Red smiled.

Once the customer was sent on their merry way, Red found himself wrapped in Blue’s arms once more.

“Are you doing anything after work?” he asked, breath blowing directly against Red’s ear.

“Taking a nap.”

“Want company? I still haven’t seen your house.”

“Sure. I think my mom’s leaving at around 10 for groceries.”

Blue’s arms tightened. “ _Really?_ ”

“Don’t you have better things to do, though?”

“I literally cannot think of a way I’d rather spend my time than in your bedroom alone with you.”

Red wasn’t sure how they survived the rest of the shift without screwing up any orders, but they did, and Red led Blue back to his house. They arrived around 8.

“Mom?” Red called as they walked inside.

“Just a moment!” she answered, voice drifting from the bedroom. Pikachu bounded down the stairs, eager to see Red again. He glared at Blue, though, who was standing behind him. Charmeleon looked up from where he was curled on a living room chair, unimpressed.

She emerged from her bedroom moments later, hair wrapped up in a towel. “Oh! Blue, welcome! I didn’t know you were coming over, otherwise I would’ve had breakfast ready. How are you?”

“Great, thank you. Sorry if I’m intruding.”

“No, not at all!” She glanced at Red. “Red just never has anyone over! I’m glad you’re here. Are you two training?”

Red shrugged. “Probably just gonna hang out and do homework. Kinda exhausted from work.”

“Of course. Well, I’ll be taking off a bit earlier than expected – I said I’d meet with Kathy to help her shop for baby supplies, you know she’s due in a few weeks. Make yourself at home, Blue. We’ve got pancake mix in the cupboard if you feel like cooking, Red.”

Blue grinned as she retreated back into the bedroom and turned to look at Red.

“ _Well,_ ” he said. Red rolled his eyes and led him upstairs, Pikachu still at his heels. The second the door closed, Blue descended upon him, pushing Red up against the door and nuzzling into his shoulder. Pikachu let out a warning growl and Red quickly shoved Blue away, causing him to trip onto the bed. He looked up in confusion as Pikachu growled louder. Red sighed.

“He’s not happy about this,” Red said, crouching down to better see Pikachu. Blue groaned.

“Are you serious?”

“Pikachu, let’s head outside,” Red said, opening the door. Pikachu glared, staying put. “Come on, buddy, let’s go.”

Blue sat up, meeting Pikachu’s glare with one of his own.

“I regret you,” he stated. Red shot him a disapproving look. “I’d invite you over to my place, but Gramps’s having a meeting. Could you get Charmeleon to…”

Red most certainly did not want to get his older Pokémon to bodily remove his younger so that he could make out with his boyfriend. Ignoring what that said about his relationship with Charmeleon, the pair would likely set the house on fire without his supervision.

“Don’t think so.”

“Can you just recall him?”

Red frowned. Blue sighed.

“Let’s go outside and run a few laps,” Red said after a moment. “Burn some of his energy.”

Blue groaned loudly. “It’s, like, ten degrees out.”

“You can borrow some sweats.”

“Fine.”

**-line break-**

Red’s mom studied him and Blue curiously as they walked downstairs, ready to run. Pikachu seemed to be in a much better mood, zig-zagging in and out of their feet.

“You have the house key? I’m taking off,” she said, picking her purse up off the chair. Red nodded. “It’s a bit cold to run.”

“Just a tad,” Blue agreed, side-eyeing Red. Red shrugged nonchalantly and pushed the front door open.

“See ya,” he called to his mom.

Blue complained the entire run, and Red cut down from his usual route out of mercy.

“You know, you could probably join cross-country if the whole training thing doesn’t work out,” Blue wheezed once they finally arrived back at the house. Red rolled his eyes as they walked inside, Pikachu happily darting through the kitchen and back to them. “Will he leave us alone now?”

The answer was no.

Red laid flat on his bed, Pikachu protectively curled on his chest, and he wasn’t sure if he was more touched or annoyed.

“You know what?” Blue said, sitting at the foot of the bed, annoyed. “I’m getting Eevee.”

Red nodded, tentatively raising a hand to pet Pikachu Pikachu swished his tail, but otherwise didn’t react as Red gently combed through his fur with his fingers.

“Can’t believe the fucking rat’s getting more action than me,” Blue muttered. “I’ll be back in a few.” Pikachu seemed to smirk as Blue walked out of the room.

“Thanks,” Red called after him, hesitant to move and disrupt Pikachu resting on his chest. Pikachu let out a happy “chu” as Red continued to pet him. “I can never tell what you want,” Red muttered at him.

Blue returned a while later, Eevee curled around his shoulders. “You didn’t even move?” Blue asked tiredly.

“He’s comfortable,” Red said simply.

“Well, he’s about to be comfier,” Blue declared. Eevee mewed from his shoulders, and Pikachu looked up in interest. “Come on, we’re going down to the living room. Maybe Charmeleon will want to join in.” He turned back towards the door, and Pikachu hopped off Red to follow. Red took a deep breathe before getting up and following as well.

Downstairs, Charmeleon watched unamused as Eevee hopped onto the couch and nuzzled Pikachu, who mewed happily back. Blue stood, hands on his hips, looking proud of his accomplishment.

“I’m basically a Pokémon master,” he stated. “Look at that. Now we can have some peace.” He turned to Red, grinning. “Right…?”

The front door swung open and Red’s mom walked in, talking loudly on the phone. She paused once she saw Red.

“One second,” she snapped, then turned her attention to her son. “Red, do you know where we left your old crib? Or did we give that one away to Susan? Kathy and I couldn’t find a decent one, and I wanted to check here before we drove up to Viridian.”

And so ensued the hour long search through the house for Red’s old crib, which Blue half-heartedly helped with. Coming up unsuccessful, Red’s mom sighed.

“Alright, Viridian it is. Will you two be okay here? We’ve got food for dinner in the fridge – wait, did you two even eat breakfast yet?”

Red guiltily shook his head while Blue tried to hold back another groan of impatience.

“Should I cook something now? Since I won’t be back for dinner. Kathy can wait.”

“We’ll be fine,” Red said, crossing his arms.

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Call me if you need anything.”

With that, she left once more, and Blue all but pounced on Red.

“Now can we…”

“Now I’m hungry.”

Blue looked like he was ready to explode.

By the time they finished cooking and eating breakfast, the exhaustion from working the night shift had fully set in, and the two found themselves asleep the second they hit the bed.

**-line break-**

Red woke to the sound of Blue’s phone buzzing, Blue’s hands shoved up Red’s shirt and splayed flat across his chest. He could hear Blue’s soft breathing in his ear, the entirety of Blue’s body pressed against Red’s back.

“Blue,” Red whispered, shifting to face him. “Your phone’s ringing. Blue?”

Blue sleepily opened his eyes, slowly processing the face in front of him. He rolled over so that his body was caging Red’s, and, completely ignoring his phone, leaned down to press their lips together.

Red’s mind went completely blank of anything but the feeling of Blue on top of him, his mouth on his own, the soft pressure of Blue’s lips gently moving. Red hesitantly raised a hand, pushing his fingers into Blue’s spiky hair, marveling at its slight coarseness.

They took their time before pulling apart, breathing hard.

“Finally,” Blue whispered, awe etched into his face.

“Your phone,” Red muttered.

Blue let out an annoyed huff before reaching over and pulling his still-ringing phone off the nightstand.

“Yes?” he said, answering it. Red could hear Mr. Oak’s voice on the other end. “I’m at Red’s house. We’re doing homework.” Blue paled. “I have my lit textbook- no, it’s… Yes, Eevee’s here. Uh.” He looked down at Red. “Red, am I staying over for dinner?”

“Yes,” Red answered easily.

“Yes, I’m staying over for dinner. His mom stepped out for a bit. No, I’m not bothering anybody. _Yes,_ I’m getting homework done. I just left my calc textbook at home. I’m looking off Red’s. Yes. Jeez. Okay, bye. See you later.” Blue hung up and threw his phone onto the floor before turning back to Red.

“If he asks, we were working on lit practice tests and calc homework,” Blue said. “Now, where were we?”

Red pulled Blue’s head down and kissed him again, more fiercely, tongue pushing up against Blue’s mouth. Blue gasped, and Red took the opportunity to push his tongue up against Blue’s. Blue’s hands rubbed up against Red’s sides, slipping under his shirt and feeling along Red’s stomach and chest. Once they broke apart again, Blue shoved his head against Red’s neck, sucking and nipping where his shoulder began.

Red ran his hands up under Blue’s shirt, pulling it up over his head, and Blue sat up a moment to yank it completely off, and Red couldn’t stop himself from staring. Blue smirked, before dragging Red’s off as well. He immediately got to work pressing kisses all along Red’s body while Red gasped and squirmed underneath him, Red’s hands tangling in Blue’s hair and digging into his back.

“For someone who talks so little,” Blue whispered against his stomach, “you sure make a lot of noise in bed.”

Red blushed, entire body heating as Blue chuckled into his skin.

**-line break-**

Leaf committed to Snowpoint School of Natural Sciences, a small college halfway across the world, and it took Red everything he had to be happy for her instead of scared. He knew it was her dream school, that she’d intended to go abroad for years, but the thought that she would be so impossibly out of reach still stung.

They celebrated the day she committed with ice cream despite the lingering winter chill and a small party with the Science Bowl team, which continued to guilt Red for never joining.

His financial aid package from Saffron Tech came in two days later, and Red and his mom found themselves hovering around his computer, examining the e-mail indecisively.

“Can you appeal?” she said at last. “I mean, we could make it work, but…”

“Pewter offered me a full ride,” Red said, chest tightening.

“You said you didn’t want to go there,” she said. “They didn’t have a league. Besides, Red, you’re still waiting to hear back on Regional Merit and a few others, right? Those will make a big difference.”

“Yeah,” Red mumbled.

He retreated upstairs, feeling miserable, and sat on his bed. Pikachu and Charmeleon followed shortly after, Charmeleon shoving his head up against Red’s chest. He did this whenever Red was upset.

Red’s phone buzzed, but he didn’t bother to check it. He already knew it was Blue.

He still didn’t have an answer on where he’d be going to school. What was the point in talking?

**-line break-**

“Red,” Blue said. Red jumped. He was walking out of school, Leaf having left earlier without him to go meet up with some visiting family. The rest of the building was nearly empty save for a handful of club meetings. “Didn’t mean to scare you. I was just in my grandfather’s classroom, and thought- well, here we are. Are you alright?”

Red shrugged.

“Didn’t get much financial aid?”

Red shrugged again.

“…So you’re not going to Saffron Tech?” Blue’s voice sounded almost pleading.

“I don’t know.”

“Can we talk about this?”

“About what?” Red felt tired.

“I don’t know, you just haven’t responded to anything I’ve sent in the past few days, and I just didn’t know what you wanted.”

“I don’t know.”

“Red, I still want to be with you, even if you go somewhere else. That’s okay.”

Red shrugged. “I’m still waiting on other scholarships.”

“Still. If you end up somewhere else, Red, that’s _okay._ I still like you.”

Red shifted uncomfortably, and Blue pulled him into a hug.

“I like you so _much_ , Red, and that’s not changing,” Blue whispered. “I don’t know what’s going to happen in college, but regardless of where we’re at, I want to give us a shot.”

“That usually doesn’t work out,” Red muttered.

“I don’t care. I want to try.”

**-line break-**

March came along, and Red still hadn’t committed anywhere. Cerulean Tech had given him a bigger financial aid package and had a decent league, and Red was starting to lean towards there. Saffron Tech was still his top choice, but it felt too unobtainable.

“You gotta decide at some point,” Leaf said. Red shrugged. “The decision isn’t going to make itself. I don’t think you’d be unhappy anywhere. Whatever happens with Blue will happen with Blue. Seriously.”

“I liked Saffron Tech,” Red said. “I don’t know.”

“You said if you get Regional Merit and that one other thing Cerulean Tech tuition would be basically free, right? Saffron Tech would still put you like $20k in debt at that point.”

“Yeah.”

“Go tour Cerulean. Seriously. It’s not even that far from Saffron. Like, Saffron Tech’s in the northern part of Saffron and Cerulean Tech’s in the southern part of Cerulean. They’re like, rivals, and have tons of events together. Seriously, Red, it’s not a bad school. I mean, I think you’re an idiot for turning down UKP, but I get wanting to go somewhere smaller with a league.”

Red sighed. “You have a point.”

He ended up touring there two weeks later, on a sponsored “Accepted Students’ Day” program. And Leaf was right. It wasn’t a bad school. Without Blue there to distract him, he was able to actually listen to everything the tour guide said. The area was absolutely beautiful, and the campus, while small, was surrounded by rows of small shops and local restaurants. Cerulean Cape was a twenty minute subway ride north, Saffron Tech a twenty minute ride south.

Where Saffron had a Battle Box, Cerulean boasted a wide, outdoor all-weather stadium with plexiglass barricades covering the stadium risers. Charmeleon felt right at home, there.

The dorms left a lot to be desired, but their view was incredible. The academics were great, and while they boasted less variety than Saffron, smaller class sizes and plenty of room for independent studies and concentrations assured Red he’d be fine there.

Once home, he texted Blue.

_Red: i think i’m going to go to cerulean_  
Blue: perfect, i’ll still be able to beat the shit out of you in pokemon. plus we can go to the cape for dates;)  
Red: thx

**-line break-**

“I have work soon,” Red protested as Leaf led him up to the park. “It’s Pikachu and Charmeleon’s rest day, anyways. We went for a run this morning.”

“This is important,” Leaf said. The cherry blossom trees were in full bloom, petals drifting down along the sidewalks as they marched up the hill. A few fluffy clouds drifted lazily overhead, refusing to block out any of the spring sun.

Red sighed as they reached the top of the hill, up near the park. Young families dotted the fields and playground, enjoying the warm weather. On the basketball court stood a lone figure, a small, fluffy Pokémon at his side.

Red blinked. Was that…?

“Come _on,_ ” Leaf said, pulling on his arm. They headed straight to the court, Leaf letting go of Red before he approached.

There stood Blue, dressed in a full suit, Eevee wearing a bowtie at his side. Laid out before him in what Red assumed were stars from Eevee’s Swift was the word “PROM?”

Red immediately started blushing as Blue stepped forward.

“Well?” he asked, grinning.

“I didn’t… know you wanted to go,” Red said after a moment. They certainly hadn’t mentioned it before.

Blue’s smile faltered for a moment. “Of course I do. And there’s nobody I’d rather go with than you, of course.”

Red tried to ignore Leaf taking pictures in the background when he stepped forward and pulled Blue into a tight embrace.

“Then sure,” he whispered.

**-line break-**

Red’s mom drove them out to the beach to get “just the right” pictures, Blue’s sister Daisy flying out to Pallet to join them for the occasion. Red felt out of place in his rented tux, constantly tugging at his dark blue tie. Blue sat in the carseat next to him in a white suit, a dark red tie around his neck.

Pictures seemed to go on forever, both of them blushing through all the poses Daisy put them through. An eternity later, they were released to go to dinner and meet up with Leaf, who brought Bridget along as a friend.

Red hadn’t been sure what to expect out of his first and only school dance, but it was fun enough. He and Blue stuck close together the whole time, spending more time chatting over the fires outside the venue than on the dance floor. Blue looked really nice, he thought, in the firelight. As the sun set, the sharp angles of Blue’s face were highlighted by the flames, his eyes shining.

“I had trouble picturing you in a suit before,” Blue mentioned, hand ghosting over Red’s, “but I do like it.”

They skipped the school-sponsored after prom party and went to Blue’s empty house instead.

**-line break-**

Blue’s graduation was a week after Red’s, something that annoyed Blue almost as much as Red’s last-minute growth spurt. But it meant that Red was free to watch it, seated next to Blue’s sister, with Pikachu hiding under his seat. It was a long ceremony, mostly boring, but the cheering and talking and everything afterwards saturated the air with excitement. Red almost couldn’t feel the dread that sat in his stomach as Blue reached up to yank his graduation cap over Red’s head and pulled him in for a kiss.

They didn’t know what kind of adventure tomorrow would bring, but today’s was pretty good.

**Author's Note:**

> i was feeling nostalgic and while i'm not totally happy with this fic i hope it catches at least some of what it feels like to be dating in high school
> 
> i swear to god i write better than this normally just go look at wasteland, baby! i promise it's pretty okay


End file.
